Fluminense secured a goalless draw on Thursday in their visit to Paraguayan side Cerro Porteño, maintaining their lead in Group A of the Copa Libertadores and pushing the home team down to third place in the standings.

In a match that only really heated up in the second half, the Rio de Janeiro team dominated much of the action and weathered a couple of attacks from the blue-and-red-clad Cerro Porteño.

The absence of John Kennedy, Kauã Elias, Arthur Wenderroscky, and Alexsander Gomes from the starting lineup was notable; they were not called up for the match in Asunción due to "disciplinary reasons."

One of Fluminense's clearest chances came around the 72nd minute, when Colombian Jhon Arias struck a rebound that hit the crossbar and ended up in the back of the Paraguayan net after a header from a Paraguayan player. However, after VAR review, Uruguayan referee Esteban Ostojich disallowed the goal.

Cerro Porteño's response was almost immediate, with a dangerous header from Robert Piris da Motta that was saved by goalkeeper Fabio Deivson Lopes.

With this result, Fluminense, the current leaders of the Copa Libertadores, reached five points to maintain their position at the top of Group A.

They are followed by Chilean side Colo Colo, who also played out a 0-0 draw in their visit to Alianza Lima on Tuesday, and Cerro Porteño, both with four points.

The team led by Spanish coach Manolo Jiménez dropped to third place in the table. Meanwhile, the team from the Peruvian capital sits at the bottom with two points.