Ecuador out of the World Cup: Senegal knocked him out and qualified

Voucher. And of course it’s worth it. The pain of being left out cannot obscure the fact that Ecuador’s path in Qatar was one of earned respectthe one with the defended jersey, the one with a young team with projectionthe one of a coach who gave him an order. La Tri was so, so close to getting into the round of 16 that the pain of the thousands of Ecuadorians who were at the Khalifa Stadium and the millions who followed it on TV is inevitable. The “yes we can” is worth more than ever for more defeat and elimination has been experienced.

And several axes can be found to explain the fall as well as to think why I could have had another ending. The truth is Senegal left very convinced, with more determinationno. It was not difficult for him to steal the ball from Ecuador, he almost accidentally found it. And the general inattention, perhaps a product of nerves or inexperience, gave the Africans clear goal situations.

In fact, to have finished the first half with only one goal down, seemed to be a good deal. Because before the run over penalty that Hincapie made, the string of arrivals followed one another. Gueye first, Dia kinda boded badly. The inattentive center-backs, the midfielders without control of the ball or the pass, intermittent Silver and an Enner Valencia who, no matter how much will he put in, the sprained knee took its toll.

Alfaro’s changes, the general urgency and Senegal’s decision to delay put together a combo to be excited. Ecuador, without playing quite well, began to take the game towards the rival area. Reasco’s mobility was important for the spaces to appear and thus the midfielders joined the attack much more although the depth did not appear. The corner that Hincapie deflected for Caiceso’s goal was the prize for the search.

But if the games are won or lost by the details, Ecuador did not leave the party quickly for the tie. He neglected the middle and Sarmiento made one of those unnecessary fouls, generating a free kick for Senegal, who had not attacked for about twenty minutes. And without being able to restart the game, taking advantage of the despair of the Africans, Koulibaly made it 2-1.

Desperate but with few lights in the game, he had a left-footed shot from Silver the chance of a tie that would have been a finishing touch for a good tournament for Ecuador in Qatar. The crying, everyone’s hug, Alfaro’s consolation for each one, the prayers, the applause of his own and foreign fans. La Tri was not on a walk in Qatar.