Ecuador vs Argentina
Time: 22:00 UK
Date: 10th June
Stage: Qualifying Stage
Competition: World Cup Qualifying
Venue: Atahualpa
Argentina’s game against Ecuador in Quito will be the Albiceleste’s third encounter, in their last four matches, to be played at high altitude. Diego Maradona’s side was the victim of a heavy 6-1 defeat handed by the Bolivians in La Paz. But Argentina bounced back with a 3-1 victory in Panama where the altitude is also high. This result came in friendly game on May 21. Striker Gonzalo Bergessio was the star man in this game, netting twice to seal Argentina’s 3-1 victory on the day.
After the game, Maradona clearly avowed his satisfaction at the performance of his team – entirely made of home-based players.
"I was delighted with everyone," the former World Cup winning captain simply stated.
The coach is said to name his team list on May 28th for the Argentina squad that will play against Colombia and Ecuador. Maradona may opt to fill his squad selection with a number of players that featured against Panama.
So the 3-1 victory against Panama on high ground certainly came as a huge boost to the camp of the Argentines. After a home qualifier at home to Colombia, the Albiceleste will travel to Quito to face the Ecuadorians in La Tri’s fortress.
Ecuador are best known for their strong record on home soil. Their only defeat in as many games in Quito came against Venezuela in the first match of the World Cup qualifying campaign. Since then, La Tri have been able to hold off the likes of Peru, Argentina, Colombia, Bolivia, Chile, Brazil, and Paraguay in their own fortress.
Ecuador have managed to pick twelve good points on home soil out of a possible twenty-one – which is quite a good result for the Ecuadorians who had to come up against big guns like Brazil or even Paraguay. La Tri lost all of their away matches in the qualifiers so far but drew twice. The difference between their away form and their home performances is none less than huge. Ecuador are just two places behind the qualifying zone and their position is mainly due to their excellent shape on home soil.
Ecuador will remember of the big threat they posed to the Argentines in the first leg of this fixture. The Ecuadorians were leading 1-0 and were just about to wrap up a memorable victory against Argentina. But the Albiceleste had to fight hard before earning themselves a point with a 90th minute equalizer. Ecuador could make things even more difficult this time around as they will be playing in Quito against the Argentines.
However, the high altitude factor may not be enough for the Ecuadorians as Maradona may feature a side who can win even on high ground, like the squad that played against Panama some days earlier. What is certain is that both teams will go into the encounter with a winning mentality which will make the clash more interesting.
