RIO DE JANEIRO, July 15 (Xinhua) -- Patrik Mercado scored twice as Independiente del Valle cruised to a 4-0 home win over 10-man Vasco da Gama in the Copa Sudamericana playoff round on Tuesday.
The Brazilian side suffered a major blow in the 12th minute when defender Lucas Piton was shown a straight red card for a dangerous challenge on Darwin Guagua.
Mateo Carabajal put the Ecuadorian team ahead with a close-range strike just before halftime and Mercado doubled the lead with a clinical finish into the bottom-left corner shortly after the restart.
Claudio Spinelli tapped home after combining with Ronald Briones and Mercado put the result beyond doubt by drilling a shot into the top-left corner eight minutes from time.
The decisive second leg will be played in Rio de Janeiro on July 22. The winner on aggregate will advance to the round of 16.
Elsewhere in the Copa Sudamericana on Tuesday, Central Cordoba was held to a goalless home draw by Cerro Largo and Bahia drew 0-0 at America de Cali. ■
