Ecuador vs Uruguay prediction: SOUTH AMERICA: World Championship – Qualification betting tips on match 2023-09-11 21:00.
Ecuadorâs road towards the 2026 FIFA World Cup began in familiar fashion as they opened their second consecutive qualification campaign with a 1-0 defeat to world champions Argentina. They bravely held Lionel Messi and co. at bay until the 78th minute, but thanks to a three-point deduction for the falsification of documents in the previous campaign, FĂ©lix SĂĄnchezâs men prop up the early table as they attempt to reach their fifth World Cup.
However, with six automatic qualification spots on offer (and one play-off place), La Tricolor should still be confident of progression, especially as since CONMEBOL introduced the round-robin format, theyâve only once finished outside the top six. Thereâs also another good omen in the fact they have won each of their last three opening home World Cup qualifying (WCQ) games, including most recently against Uruguay in 2020 (W 4-2).
That might make the visitors sit up and take notice, although they are on a four-match winning run of their own after opening their WCQ campaign with a 3-1 victory over Chile. Recently appointed head coach Marcelo Bielsa put his faith in youth by selecting no player over 30 and was rewarded with exactly the same scoreline he achieved in his first competitive game with Leeds in 2018!
La Celeste have lost just one of their last six fixtures on foreign soil (W3, D2), so will hope the âBielsa wayâ can help them build on that record given theyâve lost the last three H2Hs in Quito, a far cry from when they went more than 40 years without a H2H defeat anywhere between 1939 and 1979! The two-time World Cup winners can also take encouragement from winning their last two WCQ away games âto nilâ.
Key battle: Centre-back Willian Pacho scored between the 55th and 65th minutes of two of Ecuadorâs last four fixtures, but could be preoccupied here with Darwin NĂșñez, who has four goal contributions (G2, A2) in his last three games for club and country.
Hot streak: Uruguay havenât conceded a first-half goal in any of their last 17 matches (HT: W11, D6).