World Cup qualifiers: Brazil beat Uruguay 2-0 as Cavani sent off

Brazil continued their perfect start to the qualifiers for the 2022 World Cup with a 20 win over Uruguay while rivals Argentina stayed in touch with an easy win in PeruFirsthalf goals from Arthur and Richarlison helped Brazil to a 20 win over Uruguay who had Manchester United striker Edinson Cavani sent offArgentina with Lionel Messi pulling the strings brushed aside a limited Peru 20 in Lima with goals from Inter Milans Lautaro Martinez and Nicholas Gonzalez in a game in which they were never troubledEcuador playing on their home turf in highaltitude Quito hammered Colombia 61 Paraguay and Bolivia fought out a 22 draw while Venezuela the only South American team never to qualify for a World Cup finals picked up their first points in a 21 victory over Chile in CaracasVictory in Montevideo left Brazil on top of South Americas qualifying standings on 12 points with four wins from four games Argentina is second on 10 points after beating Peru with surprise team Ecuador third on nine pointsUruguay is fifth on six points behind Paraguay on goal difference after four matchesThe first four teams in South Americas roundrobin competition qualify directly for the World Cup finals in Qatar while the 5th placed nation faces a playoff against the country qualifying from OceaniaFivetime world champions Brazil were fortunate to be two goals up at half time in Montevideo after Uruguay had hit the woodwork twice at either end of the halfThe win also extended Brazils long reign of dominance over the Celeste who have not beaten their fierce rivals since 2001Cavani miseryCavanis sending off with 20 minutes to go capped a miserable night for his side despite having the better of things for much of the first halfChilean referee Roberto Tobar showed him a yellow card after his lunge caught Richarlison on the ankle But after a VAR check that changed to red leaving Cavani incredulous and he left the pitch reluctantlyBrazil almost drew first blood after two minutes of a lively opening when Uruguay keeper Martin Campana parried a closerange shot from Gabriel Jesus after the Manchester City striker bought a yard of space on the edge of the sixyard boxAlmost immediately Uruguays 21yearold Benfica star Darwin Nunez turned Brazil fullback Danilo inside the area and rattled Edersons bar after a neat pass from River Plates Nico De La CruzUruguay fashioned another giltedged chance when Nathan Nandezs cross from the right was headed over by CavaniBrazil had most of the ball but could find no way through a wellmarshalled Uruguay midfieldThey finally broke through however with their first real chance in half an hour and with a large slice of luckFeeding on a slick layoff from Gabriel Jesus Arthurs shot from outside the area took a wicked deflection off the back of Uruguay defender Jose Gimenez wrongfooting the luckless Campana who could only watch it bounce into the netTwo minutes later a slick through ball from the Juventus forward put Liverpools Roberto Firmino in on goal but his left foot shot lacked the power to beat CampanaBrazil gradually got on top on midfield as the half wore on and struck a body blow to Uruguays hopes of a revival when Everton striker Richarlison headed in a long cross from Renan Lodi out on the left to score his 8th goal for BrazilIt was a cruel blow just before half time emphasised when Uruguay skipper Diego Godin powered a header against the Brazil bar from a freekick by De La CruzShowing slickness on the ball Brazil began to cruise in the second half even without the injured NeymarUruguay missed the physical presence of Luis Suarez out with a positive Covid19 test and Brazil centre halves Thiago Silva and Marquinhos had the better of a sometimes tasty encounter with their former Paris SaintGermain teammate CavaniKeep scrolling to read more newsCatch up on all the latest sports news and updates hereAlso download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updatesMidDay is now on Telegram Click here to join our channel middayinfomedialtd and stay updated with the latest newsThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever