In Friday’s 1-1 draw, Ecuador’s Enner Valencia cancelled out Cody Gakpo’s stunning strike, denying the Netherlands the opportunity to become the first team in World Cup history to secure a last-16 spot.
Louis van Gaal’s players were far from their fluid best, as they were in Monday’s win against Senegal, but they claimed an early lead when in-demand forward Gakpo rifled in from 20 yards.
Ecuador, on the other hand, were active throughout and were fair value for their equalizer, which made Valencia only the fourth player in World Cup history to score six successive goals for a nation, albeit the striker was pulled off hurt just before the game’s end.
This may have an influence on his chances of winning the Golden Boot, but Valencia’s goal kept Ecuador and the Oranje together on four points in Group A, and doomed hosts Qatar to an early exit after their 3-1 loss to Senegal.
The Netherlands took the lead after just six minutes, and they did so spectacularly when Gakpo grabbed onto Davy Klaassen’s flick-on before blasting into the top-left corner.
Ecuador, on the other hand, responded positively to that setback, pushing Virgil van Dijk into two last-ditch interventions before Valencia tried Andries Noppert from range.
On the stroke of halftime, La Tri believed they had scored a leveller, but Pervis Estupinan’s instinctive finish was ruled out after offside Jackson Porozo was ruled to have obscured Noppert’s view.
Ecuador would not be denied again within four minutes of the resumption, as Valencia pounced on a rebound after Noppert had saved Estupinan’s shot.
Gustavo Alfaro’s team nearly added a second goal when Gonzalo Plata hit the crossbar with a superb left-footed effort.
Ecuador’s spirits were tempered, however, by a huge setback in the closing exchanges, as Valencia was carried off on a stretcher after collapsing holding his knee.
Excluding penalty shoot-outs, Van Gaal has yet to lose a World Cup game in charge of the Netherlands (W6 D3), tying Italy great Vittorio Pozzo’s record for the most World Cup games played without losing (nine).He may be relieved to escape with a point after Ecuador threatened a miraculous comeback, with Valencia bothering the Oranje throughout.
The outcome had far-reaching consequences internationally, as Qatar became only the second host nation to be eliminated in the first round of the World Cup, following South Africa in 2010.
Next fixtures
Both the Netherlands and Ecuador enter their final Group A games needing only a point to advance to the last 16. On Tuesday, Van Gaal’s team will face an already-eliminated Qatar, while Ecuador will face Senegal.
