RIO DE JANEIRO, July 30 (Xinhua) -- Dudu and Jose Lopez scored first-half goals as leaders Palmeiras secured a 2-1 away victory over Ceara in Brazil's Serie A championship on Saturday.
Dudu opened the scoring just after the half-hour mark at the Castelao with a low shot into the bottom right corner, and Lopez doubled the lead when he coolly slotted past goalkeeper Joao Ricardo after Gustavo Scarpa's through ball.
The hosts were reduced to 10 men just after the interval when midfielder Richardson Santos was shown a straight red card for bringing down Dudu with a bad tackle.
Ceara reduced the deficit through Stiven Mendoza, who converted an 80th-minute penalty after Danilo brought down Vinicius Souza in the area.
The result marked Palmeiras' fourth straight victory while relegation-threatened Ceara have lost three of their past five games.
Earlier on Saturday, a late strike from Pedro Raul gave Goias a 1-0 home win over Coritiba, Flamengo cruised to a 4-1 home win over Atletico Goianiense and Corinthians prevailed 1-0 at home over Botafogo. ■
