Ecuador and Senegal face off on Tuesday in a World Cup Group A soccer showdown at Khalifa International Stadium.
Ecuador comes into this game sitting in second place in the group, having picked up four points. All Ecuador needs is a win or a draw to advance to the knockout stage. Ecuador opened up the tournament with a 2-0 victory over Qatar. In the last game against the Netherlands, they played to a 1-1 draw. They fell behind in the 6th minute, but it was a goal by Enner Valencia in the 49th minute that was the difference. Ecuador had 45 percent of the possession and four shots on target. Valencia had to be stretchered off in that game, though, and it’s unclear his status for this game. If he can’t go, that is a big loss for this team.
On the other side of this matchup is Senegal, who sits in 3rd place in the group having picked up three points. Senegal knows they require a win to get through here. Senegal lost their first game against the Netherlands 2-0, but in the last game against Qatar, they were able to win 3-1. Boulaye Dia scored in the 41st minute, and Senegal never looked back. They had 55 percent of the possession and five shots on goal. Senegal still don’t have Sadio Mané, but they have survived so far without him. In this game, Senegal is going to push the numbers forward and put pressure on the Ecuador defense.
Ecuador knows they only need a point, so I would expect they are going to go in a defensive shape here. Senegal is going to have issues pushing numbers forward on this defense, and that is going to lead to this game being lower scoring. Look for both teams to struggle to score here, and the under is going to cash here.