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Cavani, Suarez, Lodeiro punish 10-man Ecuador in Uruguay victory

DOUGLAS MAGNO / AFP / Getty

Uruguay took all three points in its first match of the 2019 Copa America with a comfortable 4-0 win on Sunday.

Ecuador defended shabbily, was sloppy with its passing, and was reduced to 10 men in the 24th minute when Jose Quintero was sent off following consultation with VAR for a forearm smash on Nicolas Lodeiro.

By then, Lodeiro had already given Uruguay the lead. The Seattle Sounders midfielder evaded Jefferson Intriago and Quintero by juggling the ball before he half-volleyed past Alexander Dominguez just six minutes into the match.

Edinson Cavani arguably trumped Lodeiro's artistry soon after Quintero's dismissal. The ball dropped to the 32-year-old following headers from Lodeiro and Diego Godin, and he immediately flung himself aside to execute a stunning scissored volley.

Luis Suarez wouldn't be kept quiet for much longer and arrived at the back post to convert in the 44th minute.

Poor discipline threatened to creep into Ecuador's play during the second half, while Uruguay seemed to save its batteries for the tougher assignments to come in Copa America. But there was one more goal when Suarez, Cavani, and Gaston Pereiro's probing eventually resulted in Arturo Mina spectacularly turning the ball into his own net in the 78th minute.

Uruguay faces Japan in Group B action on Thursday, while Ecuador challenges Chile a day later.

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