Vinicius strike helps Brazil battle past Colombia, Peru beat Bolivia

Vinicius Junior struck a dramatic winner in the ninth minute of stoppage time to give Brazil a 2-1 win over Colombia in their South American World Cup qualifier on Thursday.

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The five-time world champions had taken a sixth-minute lead in Brasilia through a Raphinha penalty only for Luis Diaz's fine 41st-minute strike for Colombia to level the game.

Colombia enjoyed the most pressure in the second half but were ultimately sunk by the Real Madrid winger’s dramatic winner.

The victory leaves Brazil well-positioned in second place in the IO-team CONMEBOL quallfying group, four points behind leaders Argentina who travel to Uruguay on Saturday.

Brazil coach Dorival Junior said the win was key “because of our moment, our situation and for our process.”

“We're feeling now that we are on a path. It’s not all ideal, but we will be improving every round.”

A foul from Daniel Munoz on Vinicius resulted in the early penalty for Brazil and Raphinha, taking a short run-up, confidently slotted home the spot-kick to give the home side an early lead.