Botafogo moved a step closer to securing a berth in next year's Copa Libertadores with a 1-0 victory over Santa Cruz in Brazil's Serie A championship on Wednesday.

It took until the 87th minute for the Rio de Janeiro outfit to break the deadlock, with Rodrigo Pimpao's diving header giving the visitors their fifth straight victory.

The result in the northeastern city of Recife consolidated fifth spot in the standings for Botafogo as they moved to 53 points from 33 matches.

Santa Cruz remained 19th in the 20-team standings with 23 points.

The top six-teams at the end of the 38-game season will earn a berth in the 2017 Copa Libertadores, Latin America's flagship club competition. Endit

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