AREQUIPA, Peru, Feb. 20 (Xinhua) -- Goals either side of halftime from Paraguay international winger Angel Romero and Peruvian forward Hideyoshi Arakaki gave Melgar a 2-0 lead over Caracas FC in their final Copa Libertadores qualifying playoff here on Tuesday.

Romero opened the scoring in the 35th minute for the hosts by heading in from close range after Joel Sanchez's perfectly weighted free-kick from the right.

Sanchez was again the provider just after halftime when he played a neat one-two with Arakaki, who thumped an unstoppable 25-yard shot into the top-right corner of Alain Baroja's goal.

The return leg will be played in Venezuela's capital next week, with the winner on aggregate earning a place in the Copa Libertadores group stage.

In other playoff first leg matches, Talleres Cordoba of Argentina will host Chile's Palestino while Uruguayan side Defensor Sporting is at home to Brazil's Atletico Mineiro on Wednesday. On Thursday, Paraguay's Libertad will host 2016 champions Atletico Nacional of Colombia.