Ecuador doesn’t have a strong history of competing at the World Cup. It has taken part in two competitions, in 2002 and 2006, where it reached the Group Stage and the Round of 16 respectively. Coming into this year’s competition the team will need to overcome the tragic death of Christian Benitez during the qualifiers but are sure to do everything they can to honour his memory.
Style
Coach Reinaldo Rueda tends to play the team in 4-4-2 formation. He has developed the team into a rapid, physical, attacking side and when they are on form it is truly exciting to watch. The team has talented wingers which pose a genuine threat to all other teams in the competition. A major advantage for Ecuador is that the team is already acclimatised which will allow them to maintain their attacking style where others may tire more quickly.
Strengths
Ecuador’s team is excellent at scoring headers, 45% of their goals in qualifying came from close range headers. When the team is playing well it is fast and intense, because of this they were unbeaten in qualifying games at home, winning seven out of eight games.
In addition, the team is good at maintaining a solid defence up until the final whistle. They hardly conceded any goals in the final quarter of an hour of matches.
Weaknesses
When the team’s fast pace play is forced to slow down it tends to encounter difficulties and begin to look disorganised. It is possibly because of this that they only scored more than once in a quarter of their qualifying matches, the lowest proportion amongst all participating teams. In addition, the team failed to win a match away from home during qualifying.
Furthermore, the team’s defence let in numerous early goals and they almost never managed to keep a clean sheet.
World Cup Group Stage
- Switzerland vs Ecuador – Sunday, 15 June 2014, Match Preview
- Honduras vs. Ecuador – Friday, 20 June 2014 Match Preview
- Ecuador vs France – Wednesday, 25 June 2014, Match Preview
