Uruguay took a giant step towards Brazil with a comfortable win over Middle Eastern minnows Jordan in their World Cup qualification play-off.

Maxi Pereira and Christian Stuani got the South Americans up and running in the first half before goals from Nicolas Lodeiro, Cristian Rodriguez and a late stunner from Edinson Cavani made next week's second leg in Montevideo a mere formality.

The win was overshadowed somewhat by a shocking attempt to win a penalty by Luis Suarez in the first half as the Liverpool striker fell theatrically in the box.

Opener: Maxi Pereira (centre) celebrates the opening goal with Edinson Cavani (left) and Luis Suarez

Stuani provided the right wing cross for the opener and the wideman scored himself 20 minutes later when he sneaked in behind Odai Al-Saify at the back post to prod home Lodeiro's chipped pass to double the lead.

A spirited but outclassed Jordan enjoyed a good spell at the start of the second period but Lodeiro then added a third in the 70th minute to crush any faint hopes the hosts may have had with Rodriguez smashing home a fourth eight minutes later.

The winger latched on to the end of a cross from the left to half-volley into the near post.

It was all over at that point but there was still time to add further gloss to the result.

Cavani, who also helped set up Lodeiro's goal, capped a brilliant night for the visitors with a sparkling free-kick in stoppage time to complete the rout.

The Paris Saint-Germain striker sent the deadball goalwards with dip, curl and sideways movement to leave Shatnawi no chance in the home goal.

Reputation: Jordan fans display a message for Luis Suarez

Packed house: The Jordanian crowd were determined to enjoy their day in the spotlight

'This result will put us in a good position for the second leg,' Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez said.

'We will play with the same formation to honor the Uruguayan fans who will fill the stadium next Wednesday, as I heard that 60,000 tickets were sold.'

The Jordanians have never reached the World Cup and struggled on to compete against a Uruguay side who were semi-finalists at the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.

The defeat followed extensive preparations in Jordan for the game. The king donated £312,000 toward the cost of the team's preparations, while Jordan Television held a one-day telethon that raised £1,750,000.

Packed house: The Jordanian crowd were determined to enjoy their day in the spotlight

High flyer: Suarez leaps over a challenge from Tareq Khatib

Well-beaten: The Jordan defence hang their heads after the first goal goes in

The fever also spread to the UAE where Sheikh Mohammed and Princess Haya offered a private plane to fly the Jordan team to Uruguay for the second leg.

Security was tightened for the match in Amman and tickets for the match were sold at five times their face value on the black market.

Jordan's Egyptian coach Hossam Hassan said he was 'fully responsible for this result' and 'satisfied with the performance of my players.'

'I wished the Jordanian fans had seen their team win, but this is what happened,' Hassan added.

Acrobat: Shareef Adnan goes for the spectacular in the first-half as Jordan look for the equaliser

Scare: Uruguay goalkeeper Martin Silva is forced into a save

Outshone: Suarez didn't manage to score despite Uruguay's dominance

LUIS SUAREZ: THE DIVE FILES

Uruguay v Argentina (October 2013): Suarez created all manner of trouble by throwing himself to the ground during the 3-2 win. He picked himself up and scored from the resulting penalty.

Uruguay v Peru (September 2013): The striker managed to get Peruvian Yotun Flores sent off. Suarez went down after apparently being barged in the back but replays showed minimal contact. It sparked a brawl and Flores was sent off for violent conduct.

Liverpool v Stoke (October 2012): One of the most ridiculous dives ever seen. Suarez tripped legitimately before thinking a Stoke defender was up behind him. He couldn't wait any longer for a nudge so acted out 'the worm' to launch himself to the floor. No penalty, but Tony Pulis didn't see the funny side.

Liverpool v Everton (October 2011): Suarez went down in the Merseyside derby after Jack Rodwell appeared to hardly touch him. Needless to say the then-Everton midfielder saw red.

Liverpool v West Brom (October 2011): Under the challenge of Jerome Thomas in the penalty area, Suarez launched himself at the deck. Penalty. Charlie Adam scored and the Uruguayan was labelled the 'biggest diver in the world' by Paul Scharner afterwards.