Ecuador counted on its fans to seek a 2-1 victory over Germany and guarantee, this Thursday (24), its classification in the World Cup knockout stages as one of the best third-placed teams.
In the other Group E match, Ivory Coast beat Curaçao 2-0, gained 6 points and advanced from the group stage for the first time in its history after finishing the first stage in second place in the group, confirming the elimination of the newcomers to the World Cup.
Guaranteed as group leaders one round in advance, the Germans didn’t let their guard down and entered the field in New Jersey with the starting team, opening the scoring early on, in the 2nd minute, with Sané.
The Ecuadorians sought an equalizer in the 9th minute (Angulo), and, driven by shouts of “sí, se puede” in the stadium, they achieved a turnaround in the second half, with a goal from Flamengo’s Gonzalo Plata, avoiding what would be a disappointing campaign for the South Americans — second placed in the continent’s qualifiers.
With 4 points, striker Enner Valencia’s team guarantees their place in the round of 32 as one of the eight best third parties and awaits the end of the last group round, on Saturday, to find out the date of the next match and their opponent.
The Germans end the first phase with 6 points and return to the field on Monday (29), at 5:30 pm. They will also need to wait for the definition of who the rival will be.
The Ivorians already know that their opponent will come from the clash between France and Norway, who will play this Thursday (26) to define first and second positions in Group I. If the result is a draw, the Ivorians will face Erling Haaland’s team on Tuesday (30), at 2 pm.
In its first participation in the World Cup, the Curaçao team said goodbye to the tournament after finishing fourth in the group, with 1 point.
The campaign is considered historic due to the goal scored against Germany, in the 7-1 defeat in the debut, and the goalless draw with Ecuador in the second round.
