In what was a repeat of the 2017 Libertadores final, Grêmio made their return to Lanús and once again claimed a victory over their familiar Argentine opposition. For their latest encounter, Tricolor claimed a 2-1 win over the hosts on Thursday night, in a game valid for the second round of the competition.
Léo Pereira put Grêmio in the lead in the 34th minute after a good counter-attack which ended in Ferreira laying the ball for him to slot home.
With the game tied level in the second half, Ferreira then got a goal of his own four minutes from time to seal an important three points for the Brazilian side.
For most of the game, Grêmio were the better side and largely dominated until sometime in the middle of the second half when they dropped their standards and conceded the equalizer to Belmonte. However, a beautiful sequence of passes was enough to get the job done.
Well-placed to qualify
The win was significant for Grêmio as they beat Lanús who were considered their toughest opposition in the group on paper. They can now start to think of qualification after two wins from two. For their next game, they take on bottom-placed Aragua at the Arena. Should they win that game as well, Grêmio would most likely stake their claim to advance further to the round of 16.
Grêmio are up to six points in Group H and maintain their 100% success rate at the top of the table. Lanús are in third place with three points.
Tricolor will switch their focus to the Gauchão Championship where they face Caxias on Sunday for the first game of the semifinal. For their next Libertadores outing, Grêmio will take on Aragua next Thursday as they aim to maintain their winning run.
