QUITO, Ecuador (AP) — Ecuador's Liga de Quito once again topped a Brazilian team in the Copa Libertadores and beat favorite Palmeiras 3-0 on Thursday in their first leg of the tournament's semifinal.
All the goals came in the first half, which left the hosts with confidence they could maintain the advantage next week in Sao Paulo as they look to win their second South American title.
The Ecuadorians, who eliminated Botafogo and Sao Paulo in the South American tournament, were the better team at kickoff at the Rodrigo Paz Delgado Stadium, which lies over 2,800 meters (9,200 feet) above sea level.
Liga de Quito had already squandered several opportunities when Gabriel Villamil scored the first of his two goals from close range in the 16th minute. A handball by Andreas Pereira allowed Lisandro Alzugaray to add a second from the penalty spot in the 27th minute, giving no chance to Palmeiras substitute goalkeeper Carlos Miguel — frequent starter Weverton is injured.
Palmeiras improved and started giving more work to Liga's goalkeeper Alexander Domínguez, but a counter-strike seconds before the break put Villamil once again in front of Miguel to score a third goal for the hosts.
Liga has not played a Copa Libertadores final since 2008, when it won its first and only title at the Maracana Stadium after a penalty shootout against Fluminense.
Brazil's Flamengo beat Argentina's Racing Club 1-0 on Wednesday in the first leg of their semifinal. The second will be played next week in Buenos Aires.
The Copa Libertadores final is scheduled for Nov. 29 in Lima.
AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
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