At the Monumental de Núñez, packed with over 80,000 spectators, Palmeiras defeated River Plate 2 x 1, this Wednesday (17), for the first leg of the quarterfinals of the Copa Conmebol Libertadores 2025.
The first half was a dance by Verdão, not only for the two goals, but for their posture on the field.
The reinforcement Andreas Pereira, who played his first match as a starter, was one of the highlights.
It was the new number 8 who took the corner to Gustavo Gómez’s head, who opened the scoring with less than five minutes of play.
Goalkeeper Armani worked hard, saw Lucas Evangelista head the ball to the post, but at the end of the first half, Flaco López assisted, and Vitor Roque extended the lead.
After the break, the Argentinians took advantage of Verdão slowing down and started to pose more threat.
The green and white fans were frightened by the analysis of Weverton’s penalty on Montiel.
But, after VAR review, even with the confirmation of the Palmeiras goalkeeper’s foul, the Argentine player was offside.
In the end, MartÃnez Quarta unleashed a long-range bomb, the ball deflected off Emiliano MartÃnez and left Weverton with no chance of defense.
With the victory, Palmeiras can even draw, next Wednesday (24), at Allianz Parque, and still advance to the semifinals.
River Plate needs a simple victory to take the decision to penalties or by two goals onwards to qualify directly.
Verdão returns to the field on Saturday (20), when they host Fortaleza, at Allianz Parque, for the 24th round of the Brasileirão.
📸 JUAN MABROMATA – AFP or licensors
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