Palmeiras took a big step toward securing a place in the Copa do Brasil round of 16 this Thursday (23).

Playing at home, Verdão beat Jacuipense 3-0 in a match in which Ramón Sosa was the standout performer.

The Paraguayan scored twice from the penalty spot and also found the net on two other occasions that were later ruled out.

Jacuipense had a player sent off in the first half and played most of the match with 10 men.

Despite the win, Palmeiras also left the pitch with a major concern because of Vitor Roque.

In his first match as a starter after recovering from a left ankle injury, the striker went off after suffering a hard foul and feeling pain in the same area.

The return leg is scheduled for May 13 in Londrina, far from where the Bahia-based club usually plays its home matches.

Abel Ferreira chose to rotate the squad for Palmeiras’ Copa do Brasil debut.

Flaco López, Jhon Arias, Andreas Pereira and Gustavo Gómez were among the players who started the match on the bench.

Even so, Palmeiras controlled the game and barely allowed Jacuipense to threaten in attack.

Just eight minutes in, Sosa opened the scoring from the penalty spot after winning the penalty himself following a brilliant pass from Maurício.

The Paraguayan forward found the net two more times in the first half, but both goals were disallowed.

In the first, Sosa handled the ball with his arm. In the second, he was offside.

With the score still at 1-0, Juazeirense had JP Talisca sent off with a straight red card after a hard foul on Lucas Evangelista.

Palmeiras doubled its lead late in the first half with a deflected shot from Felipe Anderson.

Early in the second half, Sosa scored again, converting a penalty awarded after a foul on Arthur.

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