RIO DE JANEIRO, Nov. 1 (Xinhua) -- Gremio took a step toward reaching the Copa do Brasil final with a 2-0 home win over Atletico Mineiro in the first leg of their semifinal on Sunday.
Carlos Vinicius opened the scoring with a long-range strike and Erick Noriega doubled the advantage by sweeping home a first-time effort after Joao Pedro's cross.
The hosts were reduced to 10 men in the 95th minute after Gustavo Martins received a second yellow card for a bad challenge on Tomas Cuello.
The decisive second leg will be played at Atletico's Arena MRV in Belo Horizonte next Saturday.
In Sunday's other semifinal first leg, a first-half strike from Mauricio gave Palmeiras a 1-0 home win over Vasco da Gama.
The visitors' hopes of an equalizer were all but dashed in the 77th minute when Alan Saldivia was sent off following a rash tackle on Vitor Roque that earned the Uruguayan defender a second booking.
The return fixture will be played at Vasco's Sao Januario stadium in Rio de Janeiro next Sunday. ■
