Ecuador won, sang and tasted: chronicle of the triumph of a team that could have been Peru

The match was won a day before by Gustavo Alfaro, in the pre-debut conference. A foreign journalist confronted Moisés Caicedo, an Ecuadorian midfielder, regarding the position that the West demands of the 832 soccer players who took a plane to Qatar to play soccer, not to change ministerial laws. What do you think of…? He urged him, as if instead of an answer, Caicedo had to test the vaccine for a painful disease in two minutes. Alfaro jumped, who in an act of the highest nobility, and absolute leadership over his team, came forward and said that they respected all Rights. The equality of all. He was so eloquent that he ended the topic, without question.

And the next day Caicedo and his teammates returned the gesture: they spoke for their boss on the field.

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Ecuador has an expensive right wing, a delight for fans who dream of the Stock Market: good Valued, Silver on all sides. They are added roadin that 4-3-3 that he plants Alfaro from the Play off but his influence is greater: even those of the Qatari bar stationed in what, Peruvianism, we call the popular north are busy with him. The goals are born from that side, very physical and very dedicated to the vertical idea of ​​​​his coach. That is his great strength in this start of the World Cup Qatar 2022. Qatar has a lot of money but Ecuador has a fortune.

From minute 5, when a play found Enner Valencia In the best possible position to hit the ball -only, medium height, without a mark-, Ecuador was building the columns of a solid game, without too visible cracks in any of its lines, and most importantly, owner without discussion of the ball and the possession (83% the first half, 60 the second). From that condition, each punch of Valued either Emphasis, each diagonal pass of the 10 Ibarra, they always found some of those three attack trains ready to go. More than how they ate, or what their diet is today, I wonder about the octane number of the gasoline they use road, Silver Y enner. Unbelievable power.

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It’s a pity that with 10 minutes to go, the local fans chose to leave early to watch other news on TV and avoid traffic: the men put on the Ghafiya -that white nightgown they use to go to the bank or the stadium, a symbol of dignity- and the women fans their Shayla -that black scarf for special ceremonies- and left. , more concerned about why Maluma didn’t play at the opening ceremony or where is BTS’s Jungkook to chase him. Two lessons emerge from Ecuador’s 2-0 win over Qatar, this team with innocent footballers, whose hopes in what the young Almoez Ali could do were diluting. The first, how important it is to form a dressing room, then a team and finally a family like the Ecuadorian one. Second, how ephemeral Qatar will be in its World Cup. He did an impressive job for such an understated level.