Palmeiras are through to the semifinals of the Libertadores and are two games away from making it to the final of the competition. Verdão claimed a dominant 3-0 win over Paraguayan outfit Libertad on Tuesday night. The first leg ended in a 1-1 score-line in Paraguay and that means Palmeiras advanced on a 4-1 aggregate.
Gustavo Scarpa opened the scoring in the 20th minute after a brilliant strike from outside the area. It was a game where Palmeiras were largely dominant and could have scored more goals but for wastefulness in front of goal.
However, things got worse for Libertad in the second half when Piris was shown a straight red for a tackle on Veiga. Four minutes later, Palmeiras doubled their advantage via a goal from Roni. The game was out beyond doubt when Gabriel Menino met Willian’s cross to make it 3-0 in the 82nd minute.
The last time Palmeiras got to the semifinals of the Libertadores goes all the way back to 2018 when they were knocked out by Boca Juniors.
In addition, the victory meant Palmeiras maintain their 100% win rate under Abel Ferreira’s command. The Portuguese finally returned to the sidelines on Tuesday after he had been out for a bit due to covid-19.
For their semifinal fixture, Palmeiras will face the winner of the second leg of the quarter-finals between River Plate and Nacional. The Argentine outfit already boast a 2-0 aggregate lead going into the second leg. Verdão will know their fate when the game is played on Thursday.
The semifinal fixtures are scheduled to be played between the 6th and 13th of January.
