Prado and Valencia secure Internacional’s vital 2-1 win over Vasco

Prado netted the opener with a composed left-footed strike from Alan Patrick's precise through ball.

Rio de Janeiro: Mauricio Prado and Enner Valencia scored either side of halftime as Internacional eased their relegation concerns with a 2-1 away victory over Vasco da Gama in Brazil’s Serie A championship.

Prado opened the scoring with a cool left-footed finish after Alan Patrick’s through ball.

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Ecuador international forward Valencia doubled the lead by combining with Fabricio Bustos before slotting home from 12 yards.

Alex Teixeira gave the hosts a glimmer of hope when he headed into the bottom-right corner following an Erick Marcus cross.

But indiscipline cost Vasco in the final minutes. The Rio de Janeiro outfit finished the match with nine men after Paulinho and Marcus picked up second yellow cards for rash stoppage-time fouls.

The result lifts Internacional to 11th in the 20-team standings, eight points clear of the relegation zone with nine match days remaining.

Vasco are further entrenched in the drop zone, falling to 18th with 30 points from 29 games.