Palmeiras beat Fortaleza and take lead in Copa do Brasil last 16 | OneFootball

Palmeiras beat Fortaleza 3-0 in the first leg of the Copa do Brasil round of 16 at Nubank Parque. Verdão’s goals were scored by Mauricio, who has now reached four goals in his last four games wearing the Alviverde shirt, Jhon Arias, and Flaco López.

The return leg will be this Wednesday (5) at 9:30 p.m. (Brasília time) at Arena Pantanal. The Ceará club sold its home-field rights. With the advantage, Verdão will look to secure a place in the quarterfinals of the national competition.

Little efficiency in attack

In the fourth minute, Jhon Arias slipped up while playing out from the back and allowed Fortaleza to threaten Palmeiras and win the first corner of the game. In the 10th minute, Verdão responded through Piquerez, who crossed into the box, but Allan could not reach it.

In the 21st minute, Palmeiras threatened again. Andreas Pereira took a free kick and forced João Ricardo into a great save at Nubank Parque. In the 22nd, Fortaleza responded, but failed to trouble the goal defended by Carlos Miguel — who reached the mark of 50 games wearing the Alviverde shirt.

In the 35th minute, Palmeiras attacked down the left. Allan combined with Arias and, from the return pass, the number 40 shot wide. Verdão controlled the match, but created only sporadic big chances.

In the 37th, another great opportunity. Maurício played Ramón Sosa through, forcing João Ricardo into another great save. On the rebound, the number 18 won a corner for Verdão. In the 41st, it was Andreas’ turn to threaten after a cross from Jhon Arias.

Paraguayans on the rise and little Jhon Arias, with a header.

Palmeiras came forward in the second minute through Marlon Freitas, who was unable to get his shot away. Shortly after, Sosa slipped the ball through for attacking midfielder Maurício to open the scoring at Nubank Parque with a fine goal. The number 18 now has four goals in his last four matches for Alviverde.

In the seventh minute, the duo linked up again. Maurício played Ramón Sosa through, and his shot was saved by João Ricardo. In the 11th, Allan missed a great chance after a pass from Sosa.

In the 18th minute, Palmeiras doubled the lead! Marlon Freitas found Allan out wide, and he crossed onto Jhon Arias’ head. The number 11 has been one of Verdão’s standout players since the World Cup.

In the 40th minute, Verdão put the game to bed and took a big step toward qualification. Arthur made a great play, João Ricardo spilled the ball into the box, and Palmeiras’ top scorer this season, Flaco López, tapped it into the back of the net.

In the closing stages, Carlos Miguel came up big to save Palmeiras and preserve the clean sheet at Nubank Parque.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.