Rio de Janeiro, Nov 6 (IANS): Corinthians' hopes of securing a berth in next year's Copa Libertadores were dealt a blow when they were trounced 0-4 by local rivals Sao Paulo.

Peru international midfielder Christian Cueva gave the hosts an early lead before David Neres, Andres Chavez and Luiz Araujo found the target,reports Xinhua.

The result at the Morumbi stadium lifted Sao Paulo to 11th in Brazil's Serie A standings while reigning champions Corinthians fell to seventh with four matches left.

The top six teams at the end of the season will qualify for next year's Copa Libertadores, Latin America's equivalent of the UEFA Champions League.

In other match, Botafogo held Flamengo to a 0-0 draw in front of capacity crowd at the Maracana stadium here.

The result left Flamengo in second spot, four points behind Palmeiras, who have a game in hand. Botafogo remained fifth, four points ahead of sixth-placed Atletico Paranaense.