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An electric buzz of excitement through the stadium as Afif gets the ball about 30 yards from goal.

Written by ABC AUDIO on November 20, 2022

Enner Valencia scored a first-half double as Ecuador overwhelmed hosts Qatar on their way to a routine 2-0 win in the opening game of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Valencia had an early header ruled out for a marginal offside call against teammate Michael Estrada, via a questionable VAR review, but he did not have to wait long to celebrate after winning and coolly converting a 16th-minute penalty.

It meant Ecuador’s captain became the first player in his country’s history to score four goals in World Cup finals, and he made it five after the half-hour mark, heading home Angelo Preciado’s wonderful right-wing cross.

Qatar will rue their joint-record scorer Almoez Ali passing up a glorious chance just before halftime but, in reality, Felix Sanchez’s side were nowhere close to the quietly building pre-match expectations, as they were comprehensively outplayed.

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Qatar vs Ecuador final score
1H 2H Final
Qatar 0 0 0
Ecuador 2 0 2
Goals:

ECU — Enner Valencia — 16th min (pen)

ECU — Enner Valencia — 31st min (Angelo Preciado)

MORE: Watch every World Cup match live with fuboTV (U.S.-only free trial)

Goalkeeper Saad Al-Sheeb was spared by the early VAR intervention when he failed to claim a set-piece and Valencia headed into an unguarded net.

Qatar’s No.1 did not make the most of that let-off, though, when he clumsily brought down Valencia in the area soon afterwards, leaving referee Daniele Orsato with little choice but to point to the spot after the Ecuador striker had darted onto Estrada’s nicely weighted throughball.

Valencia waited to send Al-Sheeb the wrong way from the resulting penalty and his finish for the second goal, arrowed into the bottom left corner, was similarly clinical.

Estrada then missed his kick when the goal his work-rate deserved beckoned after some excellent work from Gonzalo Plata, with the only concern for Ecuador boss Gustavo Alfaro coming as the hero of the hour, Valencia, hobbled off with a knee injury 15 minutes from time.

Substitute Mohammed Muntari rippled the top of the netting with a late effort, but there were precious few reasons for Qatari encouragement.

Qatar vs Ecuador as it happened, highlights from 2022 World Cup
Fulltime: Job done for Ecuador, who began with an intensity Qatar could not handle and then closed things out with an experience of the top level that their opponents did not possess. Back to the drawing board for the hosts.

1st minute: Qatar send a long ball towards the Ecuador box from kickoff but it’s dealt with very calmly. Get it launched!

1 min to kickoff: The anthems have been very well received and we’re into the pre-match handshakes. Former West Ham and Everton striker Enner Valencia leading the way as Ecuador captain. He has 13 goals in 12 league games for Fenerbahce this season.

3rd minute: GOOOOAAAALLLL!!!! HANG ON, NOOO!!!!!

Ecuador strike early! Valencia in the man on the spot, nodding into an unguarded net after Al Sheeb in the Qatar goal makes a spectacle of himself trying to claim Estupinan’s free-kick.

But there’s a VAR check and, for reasons that aren’t especially clear, the goal is ruled out. Valencia or any other Ecuador players of consequence did not appear to be offside, initially but the goalkeeper was so far out of his ground he might have inadvertently played an attacker offside. If that’s for a foul on Al Sheeb he’s a very lucky boy.

5 mins to kickoff: That passed off without incident. Infantino didn’t claim to feel Qatari today, which is just as well because there are a lot of Ecuador fans in. Here come the teams!

8 mins to kickoff: Oh good grief, Gianni Infantino has a microphone. Goodness knows where this might lead.

8th minute: Despite that gigantic let-off, Qatar are still yet to settle. Another Estupinan ball towards the box, this time from open play, causes consternation.

10th minute: Estupinan over another free-kick on the left. Ecuador are very good from these and Qatar are not helping themselves. The hosts scramble clear but it’s all hands to the pump for them at the moment. Hasan with a meaty challenge on Plata. Now Ecuador have a corner.

13th minute: Long wait for the corner as the referee tidies up some nonsense between the players in the six-yard box. Plata’s delivery is headed clear at the near post.

15th minute: Penalty to Ecuador!!!!

Valencia streams through the middle of the Qatar defence, Al Sheeb brings him down and it’s a clear penalty.

16th minute: GOOOOAAALLLLL!!!! Valencia (pen)

He’s got his goal now. Cool as you like as Valencia waits for Al Sheeb to move and them slots the ball into the opposite right corner.

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18th minute: Another dicey moment for Al-Sheeb. Estrada get on the end of a Valencia cross, can’t get it on target and is then clattered by the wayward gloveman. You get the impression Ecuador are going to try and keep him as busy as possible.

20 mins to kickoff: Here are those two lineups in full. Four out of Ecuador’s previous five games have finished 0-0 and how effectively Qatar are able to bring their ambitions of playing pretty football to bear against a robust 4-4-2 is likely to be key to the outcome.

Qatar (5-3-2, right to left): 1- Al Sheeb (GK) – 2- Pedro Miguel, 16- Khoukhi, 3- Hassan, 15- Al Rawi, 14- Ahmed – 12- Boudiaf, 6- Hatim, 10-Al-Haydos– 11. Afif, 19. Ali

Ecuador (4-4-2, right to left): 22-Galindez (GK) — 17-A. Preciado, 3-Hincapie, 2-Torres, 7-Estupinan — 19-Plata, 20-Mendez, 23-Caicedo, 10-Ibarra — 13- Valencia, 11-Estrada

25th minute: Much was made of Qatar’s two-month training camp before the tournament. Have they over-trained?

31st minute: GOOOOAAAALLLLLL!!!!! Valencia!!!!

Who had Enner Valencia for the golden boot? Caicedo drives towards a callow Qatari defensive line. The ball is worked out to the right from where Preciado sends in a delicious cross. Valencia finds the header to match at the far post, arrowing the ball down into the bottom corner. Irrespective of whether or not Al-Sheeb is playing like a competition winner, he had no chance there.

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31st minute: Brighton’s Caicedo is booked. No stranger to a yellow card, the combative midfielder, but that’s soft. Qatar lump the free-kick out of play. They’ve been awful so far.

37th minute: Valencia spins Boudiaf, who fouls him and becomes the third Qatar player into the book. The list of things the home side have done well so far is very short.

40th minute: The highly rated Afif looks to get something going down the left but he is greeted by a stacked Ecuadorian welcoming party. He’s dispossessed by Mendez.

43rd minute: Oh no, that looks like a sore one for Valencia, who just slightly hyper-extended his knee in a challenge. The Ecuador skipper is down receiving treatment and the stretcher is on. Is this the end of his Golden Boot bid?

45th minute: Five minutes of stoppage time after that pretty long VAR delay after Valencia’s disallowed goal and the treatment just delivered to Ecuador’s two-goal hero. At this stage the 2022 World Cup is Enner Valencia’s world and we’re just living in it.

45 mins to kickoff: QATAR’S FIRST EVER WORLD CUP TEAM!!!! Afif and Ali start up front!

Halftime: Huge chance for Qatar!!! Ali has a glorious opportunity to become his country’s leading goalscorer of all time outright with the final attack of the half. But he makes a complete hash of a fine cross from Al-Haydos. Qatar started to play some tidy football during stoppage time but that botched Ali effort sums up a wretched half.

46th minute: We’re back underway. Ecuador have not conceded in any of their past six games and that missed Ali chance was the only touch Qatar had inside the opposition penalty area during the first half. Makes a 2-0 lead feel pretty safe, doesn’t it?

50th minute: Valencia was just making a nuisance of himself trying to win a second ball. He seems to have shaken off any ill-effects from that knee injury.

52nd minute: Remember that gorgeous cross from Preciado for the first goal? Well, his right boot isn’t infallible. The Ecuador right-back just launched a 30-yard shot that sailed into the stand nowhere near the goal. He is only doing that because Qatar still don’t seem particularly good at getting out of their half.

54th minute: That’s the sort of South American brilliance we tune into World Cups for. Plata sashays through a couple of challenges in midfield. He’s heading out to the left but pivots to spin a wonderful cross behind the Qatar defence. Estrada can only manage an air shot at it. Could have been 3-0.

55th minute: Al-Rawi is dispossessed and Ibarra is in. He chops back onto his right foot and the shot is at a nice height or Al-Sheeb to make a confidence-boosting save.

57th minute: Mendes is into the book for a clumsy challenge. That’s needless. Ecuador shouldn’t be picking up yellow cards that might bite them later in the tournament. They’re in total control.

62nd minute: Half a chance for Qatar as Miguel times his run well and catches Estupinan napping at the back post. He makes a good connection from 15 yards but it’s wide. If Ali had met Al-Haydos’ cross that cleanly in first-half stoppage time. the hosts would be on the scoresheet.

70th minute: Ecuador are playing this out quite calmly. Qatar have defended set-pieces with a little more composure this half. A double change is about to happen, with skipper Al-Haydos and start striker Ali making way for Waad and Muntari.

75th minute: An electric buzz of excitement through the stadium as Afif gets the ball about 30 yards from goal. The locals will have wanted to see so much more of his this evening. A speculative shot flies over.

76th minute: That knee is still troubling Valencia and he’s decided to call time. Hopefully there’s no severe damage. Cifuentes is on for his captain, who has had the sort of World Cup outing that will be talked about for decades in his country.

85th minute: Muntari darts in behind the Ecuador defence and lashes a bouncing ball goalwards from the right-hand corner of the penalty area. That’s fine effort. It ripples the top of the netting and some in the stadium thought that was in. Can Sanchez’s men set up a grandstand finish?

90th minute: Ecuador’s fans are throwing around “OLES” with gusto as their team hog the ball. There’ll be five additional minutes for Qatar to endure.

2nd Round (Knockout Stage)

Date Match Time
December 3 A1 vs B2 09:00 pm
December 4 C1 vs D2 01:00 am
December 4 D1 vs C2 09:00 pm
December 5 B1 vs A2 01:00 am
December 5 E1 vs F2 09:00 pm
December 6 G1 vs H2 01:00 am
December 6 F1 vs E2 09:00 pm
December 7 H1 vs G2 01:00 am

Quarter-finals:

Sl. Date Match Time
1 December 9 E1 vs F2 Winner vs G1 vs H2 Winner 09:00 pm
2 December 10 A1 vs B2 Winner vs C1 vs D2 Winner 01:00 am
3 December 10 F1 vs E2 Winner vs H1 vs G2 Winner 09:00 pm
4 December 11 B1 vs A2 Winner vs D1 vs C2 Winner 01:00 am

Semi-finals:

Date Match Time
December 14 Winners of Quarter-finals 1 & 2 01:00 am
December 15 Winners of Quarter-finals 3 & 4 01:00 am

Third Place Decider:

December 17, 09:00 pm; Losers of two Semi-finals.

Final:

December 18, 09:00 pm; Winners of two Semi-finals.

Groups for the 2022 World Cup finals in Qatar following the draw on Friday:

Group A: Qatar, Ecuador, Senegal, Netherlands

Group B: England, Iran, USA, Wales or Scotland or Ukraine

Group C: Argentina, Saudi Arabia, Mexico, Poland

Group D: France, Peru or UAE or Australia, Denmark, Tunisia

Group E: Spain, Costa Rica or New Zealand, Germany, Japan

Group F: Belgium, Canada, Morocco, Croatia

Group G: Brazil, Serbia, Switzerland, Cameroon

Group H: Portugal, Ghana, Uruguay, South Korea

— World Cup finals to be played from November 21 to December 18

— Intercontinental playoffs to be contested on June 13-14 in Qatar:

i) Winner of United Arab Emirates v Australia face Peru

ii) New Zealand v Costa Rica

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An electric buzz of excitement through the stadium as Afif gets the ball about 30 yards from goal.

Written by ABC AUDIO on November 20, 2022

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An electric buzz of excitement through the stadium as Afif gets the ball about 30 yards from goal.

Written by ABC AUDIO on November 20, 2022

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