(Reuters) - Corinthians players covered their ears and mouths during the Brazilian national anthem before their women's league match against Santos on Friday in protest at the return of coach Kleiton Lima amid harassment allegations.

       Lima left Santos in September after 19 players accused him of harassment in anonymous letters published in a report from Brazilian media outlet Globo Ge.

       "Those frivolous letters never applied to me. I left the club to wait for Santos to carry out their investigation. There is no formal accusation against me in court," the coach told a news conference at his presentation on Tuesday.

       He added that, before handing over his position, he asked club director Alexandre Gallo to investigate the case and to open an enquiry to clarify the authorship of the anonymous letters saying he had been the victim of slander and defamation.

       The protest, which the Santos players did not repeat against their coach, also took place during the match between Avai/Kindermann and Palmeiras.

       In the official photograph, the number 19 shirts of both teams turned their backs on each other while their teammates covered their mouths in reference to the number of complaints against Lima.

       Reuters contacted Santos and Corinthians for comment on Saturday.

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       (Reporting by Angelica Medina in Mexico City; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)