International break could weigh more on Palmeiras than Flamengo in Brasileirão race

Palmeiras could be missing as many as seven players for its Campeonato Brasileiro round 35 match against Cruzeiro, as the Fifa international window ends the day before. The game, at 20:30 on 18 November at the Mineirão in Belo Horizonte, comes three points behind the leaders Flamengo, who play Athletico at the Maracanã the same night. The direct meeting between the two title contenders is set for 21 November.

Palmeiras faces more possible absences

So far, only Brazil and Argentina have published their squads, and both included Palmeiras players: Flaco López and Giay. The CBF kept players from Palmeiras and Flamengo in Brazil's camp but limited other clubs to one player each. That means Jonathan Jesus of Cruzeiro, Palmeiras' opponent in round 35, and Arthur Dias of Athletico, Flamengo's opponent, were called up.

Palmeiras has a larger number of foreign players, and Brazil's squad has usually been dominated by Flamengo, which has helped balance absences between the two clubs. At the 2026 World Cup, Flamengo had nine players called up, four of them from Brazil. Palmeiras had seven, all from South American nations: Paraguay, Uruguay, Argentina and Colombia.

Who could still be called up

Besides Flaco López and Giay, Palmeiras could have five more players called up: Gustavo Gómez and Mauricio for Paraguay, Piquerez and Emiliano Martínez for Uruguay, and Jhon Arias for Colombia. Ramón Sosa, also with Paraguay, could be another, but he is still recovering from a right thigh injury. Paraguay plays two friendlies in Singapore, while the other national teams involved play in South America, which could make it easier to arrange for players to be available against Cruzeiro.

Flamengo has not yet had any players called up for this window. However, Uruguay has agreed to release Varela and Arrascaeta early, so they will miss Uruguay's match against the Dominican Republic on 17 November and be available for the game against Athletico.

Previous window and upcoming fixtures

In the last international window, in September, Flamengo had five players called up. Samuel Lino and Pedro were called by Brazil but are no longer in the squad, so Anthony Valencia of Ecuador is the only player from that group who could still be unavailable. Flamengo's other World Cup call-ups who missed the September window were De la Cruz for Uruguay, Plata for Ecuador, who was ruled out with a right thigh injury, and Carrascal for Colombia.

Several potential call-ups play on 13 and 17 November. Argentina face Uruguay in Buenos Aires on the 13th and Costa Rica in Córdoba on the 17th. Colombia play Chile in Cali on the 13th and in Santiago on the 17th. Paraguay meet Singapore on the 13th and Japan on the 17th, both in Singapore. Uruguay play Argentina in Buenos Aires on the 13th and the Dominican Republic in Maldonado on the 17th. Ecuador face Costa Rica in Quito on the 13th and Bolivia in Guayaquil on the 17th.