Welcome to Sportstar’s highlights of the Netherlands vs Ecuador FIFA World Cup Group A match. This was Nihit Sachdeva taking you through the action as it unfolded at the Khalifa International Stadium in Ar-Rayyan, Qatar.
Going into the final round of group-stage fixtures, host nation Qatar is out of the reckoning for a place in the knockout round. It could, however, still spoil Netherlands’ party if it beats the Dutch heavily and Ecuador-Senegal ends in a draw.
Full-time whistle has been blown. One point each for the Dutch and La Tri. This means: QATAR HAS BEEN ELIMINATED.
Ecuador is pressing for the winner and it earns a corner. Sarmiento sends the corner kick in and Van Dijk clears it.
Nathan Ake puts the ball out of play on the right wing for an Ecuador throw-in after the duel with Rodriguez.
Preciado with an attempt on goal with his head from the edge of the box and an easy grab for Noppert.
Six minutes of added time.
Worrying scenes for Ecuador as Enner Valencia, current top-scorer of the tournament, is being taken off the field on a stretcher. Plata too comes off. Ibarra and Rodriguez are on.
Enner Valencia is flat on his back and receiving treatment on his right knee. Ecuador is about to make a couple of substitutions.
Foul by Estupinan. Set piece opportunity for Netherlands but it is not able to make anything out of it. As it stands, Qatar will be eliminated from the tournament and it will be the earliest exit for a host nation.
A throw-in for Ecuador inside the Dutch half but no harm done. And the camera shifts to another Valencia. It is former Manchester United player and Ecuador international Antonio Valencia in attendance!
Into the last 10 minutes of regulation time. Corner for Ecuador and Estupinan takes it. The ball reaches Preciado on the edge of the box who goes for the volley and sends the ball way over the bar.
Double substitution for Netherlands. Weghorst and De Roon replace Gakpo and Koopmeiners.
79’ STAT
Jurrien Timber with yet another foul. Ecuador with the ball now.
Foul by Berghuis on Porozo. Free kick for Ecuador inside its own half.
Substitution for Ecuador. Sarmiento replaces Estrada.
Gakpo with a chip to beat Galindez but the effort misses the far post. However, the offside flag is up so it would not have counted anyway.
Gakpo with a foul on Estupinan who was taking the ball forward from inside his own half.
Substitution for Netherlands. Klaassen subbed off. Berghuis comes on.
Ecuador looks to construct a move along the right wing but a heavy through pass from Estrada, looking for Plata, goes out for a Dutch throw-in.
Klaassen lays it up for Koopmeiners at the edge of the Ecuador box but the Dutch player sends the shot way over the bar.
Ecuador with another charge. Aerial ball for Valencia on the left wing who takes the ball inside the Dutch box before providing the cut-back for Estrada. He, however, does not make the right contact and Noppert gathers the ball comfortably.
Netherlands has been gasping for breath in the second half. Still no shots on target since the Gakpo goal.
OFF THE BAR!!!! Plata with a glorious left-footed strike beats Noppert but unfortunately, it is a few inches too high. Ecuador almost takes the lead.
Foul by Mendez on Memphis Depay and he receives a yellow card. As it turns out, the booking means Mendez will miss the final group stage fixture against Senegal.
Enner Valencia, the perennial World Cup star for Ecuador.
Ecuador has come out all guns blazing in the second half. Dutch team is getting beaten for sheer pace.
Enner Valencia is now the outright top-scorer (three goals) at the Qatar World Cup. Valencia has scored each of Ecuador’s last six World Cup goals and he is the first South American man to achieve such feat.
Who else but that man! Enner Valencia finds the back of the Dutch net after Noppert stops a strong strike from Estupinan from the left inside the box. Valencia pounces on the rebound.
Netherlands did not have an attempt on goal after the early strike from Gakpo. Louis van Gaal would not be pleased with that. A one-goal lead leaves the Dutch side vulnerable till the very end.
Second half begins! The Dutch team makes a change. Memphis Depay comes on for Bergwijn.
STAT
End of first-half. Ecuador players are livid as they feel the goal should have been allowed.
Ecuador scores the equaliser but it is disallowed as the offside flag is up! Estupinan with the slightest of deflections to wrong foot Noppert and find the back of the net after a long-range effort from Preciado from the edge of the box following the corner. However, the goal has been ruled offside since Porozo was in the line of sight of Noppert.
A slight tussle between Estrada and Timber. Not the first time today. Set piece opportunity for Ecuador. Estupinan sends the cross in from the left, Valencia heads it and it takes a touch off the back of Ake’s head before going out for a corner.
Three minutes of added time.
Can Ecuador make something happen on the stroke of half-time? De Jong commits a foul and it’s a throw-in for La Tri.
De Jong with a run on the right wing but the solo effort does not allow him to take the ball inside the Ecuador box. Possession lost.
Netherlands just about managing to maintain its one-goal lead. Ecuador has had its fair share of possession but has not been able to make an incisive move.
Foul on Bergwijn by Hincapie near the center line.
Caicedo, under pressure from De Jong in the middle, goes down and touches the ball with his hand. Free kick for Netherlands. Caicedo felt it was a foul from De Jong.
Estupinan with an aerial ball into the box but Noppert gathers it before an Ecuador head could get to it.
Dumfries with a pass along the right wing, Gakpo makes the run from the edge of the box to recover the ball but it goes out for a goal-kick for Ecuador.
Estupinan with the corner kick but the Dutch defence heads it out of the box for safety.
SAVE!!! Excellent bit of goalkeeping from Noppert after Valencia targets the Dutch stopper’s lower right corner with a curling right-footed strike from the edge of the box. Ecuador does get a corner.
Gakpo with the corner kick, Ecuadorian defence clears it and looks to counter. Does not materialise.
Klaassen with a cross from the left of the Ecuador box but Hincapie kicks it behind to concede a corner.
Preciado wins a corner for Ecuador. Valencia from the left put the cross in, Estrada with the back heel pushed the ball towards the far post but Preciado was a bit too far away. Nevertheless, good spell for La Tri continues.
Caicedo tries to put Preciado through on the right wing but the pass has too much in it and goes out for a goal-kick.
Estrada goes down after a strong challenge from Timber.
Excellent cross from Estupinan from the left for Estrada at the far post but Van Dijk clears the ball away.
Caicedo takes the ball inside the Dutch box from the left, provides the cut back but a heavy touch from Estupinan allows Netherlands to clear the ball away for a throw-in.
Current possession stats: Netherlands - 49%, Ecuador - 39%, Neither side controlling the ball - 12%
Foul on Estrada by Koopmeiners. Ecuador with the ball in the middle of the pitch.
Forceful run from Dumfries through the middle and it takes Mendez, Estupinan and Torres to stop him in his tracks before he could reach the edge of the box.
Foul by Dumfries on Estupinan. Free kick to Ecuador inside its own half.
Throw-in for Dutch team close to the Ecuador box. Dumfries takes it.
In case you want to know more about the Dutch goalscorer Cody Gakpo, here’s a quick read - Who is Cody Gakpo - Netherlands’ winger more effective than Haaland in Europe
Koopmeiners with a cross from the right but the Ecuadorian defence clears it.
Foul on Dumfries by Estrada near the center line.
Ecuador, despite high pressing from the Dutch, chooses to construct a move from the back. Gutsy stuff.
Ecuador looking for the equaliser. Timber commits a foul and Ecuador gets a set-piece opportunity inside the Dutch half. Preciado sends in the cross from the right and Estupinan’s effort is headed away by a defender.
As things stand, Qatar is heading out of the World Cup.
This is the first goal Ecuador has conceded in eight games. Streak over.
Gakpo scores again!!!! A sublime left-footed strike from the edge of the box to find the right corner of Galindez’s net. Quickest goal of the 2022 edition at five minutes 41 seconds.
Early interruption in the game as Ecuador’s Preciado goes down.
Netherlands has not lost a World Cup group stage match since 1994 while Ecuador has not conceded a goal in its last seven matches. Will any of these streaks end tonight?
Match kicks off! Netherlands, in orange, plays from left to right and Ecuador, in blue, plays from right to left.
9:25PM - The two sides are out onto the pitch for the national anthems. Stay tuned. Live action beginning shortly.
9:20PM - Gone but never forgotten
Fans hold the shirt with Diego Maradona’s name on it on the 2nd anniversary of the Argentine World Cup winner’s death prior to the FIFA World Cup 2022 Group A match between Netherlands and Ecuador at Khalifa International Stadium on Friday in Doha, Qatar. | Photo Credit: GETTY IMAGES
9:10PM - From the coach’s corner:
Louis van Gaal, Netherlands
“Ecuador is an opponent even more difficult than Senegal. They don’t score many goals but they also don’t concede many.
“Cody Gakpo is a player with a lot of talent but he is still young and has room for improvement. It is possible that he becomes the star of the World Cup. He can become a star.”
Gustavo Alfaro, Ecuador
“To succeed things you need to sacrifice a lot. But, against the Netherlands we have nothing to lose. they are a team that, apart from their ability as a team, also has that individual quality to solve problems.”
9PM - Ecuador’s last five World Cup goals have all been scored by one man - Ener Valencia. If he strikes today, he will be the first man in the tournament’s history to score six consecutive goals for a South American nation.
8:55PM - Form guide
Last five matches of Netherlands
- Beat Senegal 2-0
- Beat Belgium 1-0
- Beat Poland 2-0
- Beat Wales 3-2
- Drew 2-2 with Poland
Last five matches of Ecuador
- Beat Qatar 2-0
- Drew 0-0 with Egypt
- Drew 0-0 with Japan
- Drew 0-0 with Saudi Arabia
- Beat Cape Verde 1-0
8:50PM - Head-to-head record
Played: 2 | Netherlands - 1 | Ecuador - 0 | Draws - 1
8:40PM - In the first Group A fixture of the day, host nation lost 1-3 to Senegal. If the Netherlands does not lose to Ecuador, Qatar will be out of the race for the knockout stage even before the final round of group-stage matches. Live action begins at 9:30PM IST.
LINEUPS
Netherlands
Ecuador
PREVIEW (via Reuters)
Ecuador or the Netherlands will take a huge step towards the second round of the World Cup if either can force a victory in Friday’s Group A clash at the Khalifa International Stadium after both sides won their openers in Qatar.
But while Ecuador has set its target of advancing to the round of 16, as it did in Germany in 2006, the Dutch will be looking for a vastly improved performance to back up coach Louis van Gaal’s assertion that they can go on and win the World Cup.
The Netherlands was far from its efficient best in beating African champion Senegal 2-0 in its opening group game on Monday.
PREDICTED XI
Van Gaal was pleased with the three points, and vindication of his surprise decision to hand goalkeeper Andries Noppert an international debut, but did criticise the manner of the victory, as did captain Virgil van Dijk.
“We won but we also know that we can and must do better,” the skipper said.
“Going forward we sometimes tried to force things, and we too often left ourselves exposed to Senegal’s counter-attacks. That is an area in which we will need to improve because it is an art that our next opponents, Ecuador, are very good at.
“But I am optimistic because I feel we are going to get better,” Van Dijk added.
Ecuador is confident that Enner Valencia, who got both goals in the 2-0 win over host Qatar on Sunday, will be fit to play despite some concerns over a knee sprain.
Goalkeeper Hernan Galindez said Saudi Arabia’s shock win over Argentina on Tuesday proved no team was unbeatable.
“I think that Argentina’s defeat will not be the last surprise of this World Cup,” he added.
“Despite the victory of the Netherlands, they were evenly matched against Senegal. There are certainly ways to hurt the Netherlands.
“It will be a tough match, but I expect the Netherlands to approach us with respect,” added the 35-year-old.
The Dutch will likely give Memphis Depay the start after he came off the bench against Senegal for his first match in two months after struggling with a hamstring injury.
WHEN AND WHERE TO WATCH
Where will Netherlands vs Ecuador World Cup match kick-off?
Netherlands vs Ecuador match will kick off at the Khalifa International Stadium.
When will the Netherlands vs Ecuador World Cup match kick-off?
Netherlands vs Ecuador match will kick-off at 9:30PM IST on November 25, 2022.
Where can you watch the Netherlands vs Ecuador match in India?
The Netherlands vs Ecuador World Cup match will be telecasted live on Sports18 and Sports18 HD. On Android and well as iOS, the 2022 FIFA World Cup will be live streamed on JioCinema.
Where can you watch the Netherlands vs Ecuador match outside India?
The following list shows where you can watch the Netherlands vs Ecuador match outside India:
United States – TV: FOX, Telemundo; Live Stream: fuboTV, Fox Sports app, Telemundo Deportes En Vivo
Canada – TV: CTV, TSN; Live Stream: fuboTV, TSN app
United Kingdom – TV: BBC One; Live Stream: BBC iPlayer, BBC Sport Website
Australia – TV: SBS; Live Stream: SBS On Demand
New Zealand – TV: Sky Sports; Live Stream: Sky Sport
Malaysia – TV: RTM, Astro; Live Stream: Astro Go
Singapore – TV: Mediacorp Channel 5; Live Stream: StarHub TV+, IPTV, Singtel TV
Hong Kong – TV: BeIN Sports, ITV; Live Stream: Now TV, ViuTV
Nigeria – SuperSport and Showmax Pro
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