From 1930 to 2018, the country organizing the World Cup has never been defeated at its premiere. Will the streak end on Sunday?
As Gustavo Alfaro said on the day of the group draw for Qatar 2022, the eyes of the entire football planet will be focused on the opening match of the World Cup. After FIFA’s decision to bring the match between La Tri and the hosts forward to this Sunday 20 November (Netherlands-Senegal was about to start), the tradition of the last few Cups has been maintained: that the hosts are the first to go out in the field. In addition to having the honor of being the protagonist of one of the most watched matches, the Ecuadorian national team will be faced with a unique opportunity: if it wins, it will enter the history books and will break a 90 year streak!
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They don’t score goals, but he can’t even convert
Jordy Caicedo, the last to convert for Ecuador. Photo: AP
The Ecuadorian team faces the 2022 World Cup in Qatar with a drought of goals in attack but with a great streak without conceding a goal, because in the last six games they have only scored two goals and, on the other hand, have not conceded any.
Since the end of the Qualifiers, the Tricolor have played six preparatory friendlies, with two 1-0 victories against Nigeria and Cape Verde, and four goalless draws against Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Japan and Iraq.
Of the two goals scored, one was from left-back Pervis Estupiñán against Nigeria and the other was scored by striker Jordy Caicedo, from a penalty, against Cape Verde, so the average is one goal every 270 minutes.
Source: Clarin
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.