Real Madrid striker Rodrygo gave Brazil a 1-0 victory over Ecuador in a difficult match that they dominated but struggled to finish, and moved up to fourth place in the South American qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup.
The Canarinha, forced to win at home after three consecutive defeats, something unprecedented in the qualifiers, got the result they needed, but left doubts and were booed by their fans.
The victory allowed Brazil to rise to fourth place with 10 points, still far from the 18 points of leader Argentina, while Ecuador, with 8 points, fell to sixth place, the last one with guaranteed qualification for the World Cup, and lost the unbeaten streak it had maintained in its last five matches.
Neither the ball control for most of the time nor the offensive power of Vinícius Júnior and Rodrygo, the Real Madrid attacking duo, nor the debut of the 17-year-old jewel Estevão, cleared the doubts of a team that continues to suffer without Neymar, still out due to injury, and that also lost Pedro.
Brazil struggled in the first half to overcome an Ecuador that entrenched itself in its area and defended with five players in a row at the back.
With Vinícius on the left wing and Luiz Enrique on the right, the Canarinha had difficulty creating space in the first half, in which they had control of the ball for 64% of the time and finished with five attempts compared to three for the Ecuadorians.
The team led by Dorival Júnior only had their first clear chance at goal in the 25th minute with Vinícius after an assist from André, but the Real Madrid player ended up crashing the ball into his markers.
Brazil opened the scoring in the 30th minute when Lucas Paquetá found Rodrygo unmarked outside the area and the Real Madrid player preferred to shoot from distance as the only way to avoid the Ecuadorian barrier. His ball crashed off Galíndez’s right post before going in.
The goal gave more freedom to the Brazilians, who had some other opportunities, mainly with Luiz Henrique, but without generating much danger.
Ecuador almost equalised in the injury time when, in a counterattack set up by Kevin Rodríguez, Caicedo had two chances to shoot, the first of which was saved by Alisson and the second by Gabriel Magalhaes almost on the line.
In an attempt to react, Argentine Sebastián Beccacece, who made his debut as Ecuador’s coach, reinforced his attack for the second half with the entry of Kendry Páez and Carlos Gruezo.
The changes allowed the Andeans to balance the match and generate more attacks, but with Brazil also creating some dangerous plays although without finishing them.
The Brazilian coach also made some changes to improve his attack, mainly with the entry of Estevão, from Palmeiras, who made his debut as a senior player at the age of 17.
Beccacece then opted to take off his two starting attackers (Enner Valencia and Kevin Rodríguez) and with the entry of Yeboah and Mercado, he allowed Ecuador to find even more space and end Brazil’s dominance.
With Ecuador less entrenched, Vinícius had one of his best opportunities in the 82nd minute, when, after a play by Danilo and a maneuver by Estevão, he managed to advance freely and invade the area, but he got tangled up when he tried to elude Galíndez.
In the final minutes, Brazil preferred to manage its victory and ended up defending itself and leaving with some boos.
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