The scheme
After the brief and disastrous tenures of Hernán Daro Gómez, Jorge Célico, and Jordi Cruyff, this Ecuador team was formed from scratch when the unheralded Argentine Gustavo Alfaro was brought in to offer stability (who left without taking charge of a single game). When Alfaro took over in 2020, the route to Qatar appeared long and convoluted. However, he jettisoned the old guard of Antonio Valencia, Christian Noboa, and Felipe Caicedo to make room for younger players such as Piero Hincapié, Moisés Caicedo, and Gonzalo Plata, among others.
“It was all about getting our teeth into the challenge and making our mark on the project without changing the essence of Ecuadorian football,” he told Fifa.com. At the same time, we introduced new elements to try to reverse the dynamic that led to Ecuador failing to qualify for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
Alfaro is not hesitant to switch tactics based on the opponent, but the most common formation is 4-4-2. There have been more flirtations with the 4-3-3 formation, although the 3-5-2 formation utilized at times during qualification has not been utilized since.
With a mean age of barely 25 years, Ecuador qualified as the South American team with the youngest average age. Sadly, some prominent players have incurred major injuries: Robert Arboleda of So Paulo tore ankle ligaments in June, and Ayrton Preciado of Santos and Joao Rojas of Monterrey will also miss the tournament.
Ecuador qualified for Qatar by finishing fourth in the South American group, two points ahead of Peru, which was forced to participate in an intercontinental playoff against Australia, which they lost. Because Ecuador played an ineligible player, Byron David Castillo, there was controversy with Chile and Peru attempting to eject them from the World Cup. Fifa ruled in favor of Ecuador, but the Cas (Court of Arbitration for Sport) will hear the matter on November 4.
The trainer
In 1992, after a brief playing career for Atlético de Rafaela in Santa Fe, Argentina, Gustavo Alfaro retired to focus on coaching. He will be at the World Cup thirty years later, having acquired the affection of the Ecuadorian people for the way he speaks, represents the national team, and instills confidence in his players.
Alfaro had previously coached various Argentine clubs, notably Boca Juniors, as well as Al Ahli in Saudi Arabia when he took over Ecuador 30 days before their first World Cup qualifying match, amid a pandemic. “It was difficult,” he admits. After Ecuador qualified for Qatar, he delivered an energizing speech in which he stated, “The task was a blank wall on which they had to hang their picture of making history.
They needed to have faith, and they did. They believed from the beginning and stood united. They were both patient and persistent, but they also sought an impossible ideal. “No one ever believed in Ecuador, yet today it stands tall,”
Star athlete
Without a doubt, Moisés Caicedo, or “Nio Moi” as he prefers to be called, is the star of this team. The Brighton dynamo has become an important member of the squad, contributing to its stability and defense. As a box-to-box midfielder, he contributes to both the offense and the defense. Roberto De Zerbi, coach of Brighton, describes him as “one of the finest midfielders in the Premier League,” adding, “Caicedo is a top player both with and without the ball.
Numerous players are excellent with the ball yet poor in defensive spaces when they are without it. With Caicedo, I cannot imagine anything below the highest level.” Caicedo is not a conventional superstar player. He won’t score a bicycle kick from midfield or dazzle opponents with smooth talents, but his effective passing, outstanding positioning, and game-reading ability could be crucial to Ecuador’s advancement.
Unsung hero
ngel Mena might not always shine brightest in a game and is occasionally even on the bench, but his contributions on and off the field are highly respected by the entire club. Mena is one of the most experienced players on La Tricolor, and his intellect helps the squad to play the coach-preferred high-speed game. He is a left-footed winger with exceptional vision and shooting ability. He joined the Mexican club Club León in 2019 at age 34.
Qatar position
No player, member of the coaching staff, or executive of the Ecuadorian football federation (FEF) has mentioned the human rights situation in Qatar, nor will they do so while the squad is in Qatar. There is no issue with embracing Qatar’s cultural conditions, and the team will not participate in any initiatives, such as donning a rainbow-colored captain’s armband. There have been no formal remarks from the FEF regarding La Tricolor’s stance, but, certainly, the players will not participate in the debate.
National hymn
Salve, Oh Patria was composed by Ambato poet Juan León Mera (1832-1894) and French-born composer Antonio Neumane Marno (1818-1871). Before the Galo Plaza administration declared it the national anthem on November 23, 1948, it underwent several alterations. It refers to the original rebellion against Spain on August 10, 1809, and the subsequent struggle for independence.
Legendary cult hero
It is fair to assume that Ecuador has not produced a large number of cult heroes, but Iván Kaviedes may be the only player to merit this designation. The 6ft striker was one of the first Ecuadorian players to travel to Europe and scored the equalizer against Uruguay in qualifying to help his team qualify for the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea.
At the club level, one of his finest moments was scoring a bicycle kick against Barcelona for Real Valladolid. His disciplinary record was not the best, and since his retirement, he has stated that his chase of women occasionally caused him to lose concentration on his profession.
