RIO DE JANEIRO, June 18 (Xinhua) -- Former Dynamo Kyiv playmaker Dudu struck either side of halftime as Palmeiras rose to the top of Brazil's Serie A standings with a 3-1 victory over Santa Cruz on Saturday.
Midfielder Jean, like Dudu a former Brazil international, was also on scoresheet for the hosts at their Allianz Parque stadium in Sao Paulo.
The result lifted Palmeiras, who were relegated to the Serie B in 2013, to the league summit with 19 points from nine matches. Santa Cruz dropped to 11th.
Meanwhile former Corinthians and Shanghai Shenhua defender Paulo Andre scored with an 88th-minute header to give Atletico Paranaense a 1-0 home victory over Santos.
Atletico moved to ninth in the standings with 13 points while Santos remained fourth.