Corinthians edge out Neymar-less Santos in Campeonato Paulista semis

A Santos team without Neymar on the pitch lost the Campeonato Paulista semifinal 1-2 on Sunday against a solid Corinthians team that interrupted the opponent's streak of four consecutive victories.

Neymar spent the match on the bench due to discomfort in his left thigh, although it is not considered serious by the coaching staff.

The defeat deprived Santos of the possibility of playing for their first title since the former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain striker's return to Brazil was announced at the end of January.

The winning team will now face the winner of the match between Palmeiras and São Paulo, scheduled for tonight, in the championship final.

Although Santos had shown a good level of football in recent matches, they lost another match against Corinthians on February 12th, also by a 1-2 scoreline.

Neymar started the season out of form, but quickly got back on track and has scored three goals and three assists in the last seven games, although these have been against lesser teams than Corinthians. The striker's real test will come when the league kicks off later this month.