Rio de janeiro, Sep 11 (IANS): Flamengo secured their fifth straight win in Brazil's Serie A championship with a 2-0 victory over defending champions Cruzeiro.
The hosts opened the scoring on the stroke of halftime when Alan Patrick played a one-two with Kayke before firing a first-time shot into the top corner on Thursday, reports Xinhua.
Luiz Antonio doubled the lead just after the hour with a fizzing 25-yard volley following Patrick's delivery from the corner flag.
The result at the Maracana stadium lifted Flamengo into the top four of Brazil's Serie A standings for the first time in almost four years.
Oswaldo de Oliveira's team now have 38 points from 24 matches while Cruzeiro have slid to 13th place with 28 points.