Eloy Room made a total of 15 saves to help Curacao claim their first point at the World Cup with a 0-0 draw against Ecuador. The Island nation, the smallest country at this year’s World Cup, kept their faint knockout hopes alive with the result heading into the final set of fixtures in the group.
CURACAO VS ECUADOR, FIFA WORLD CUP 2026 HIGHLIGHTS
Germany’s win against the Ivory Coast meant that both teams needed the win. While Ecuador had 15 shots on target and 75 percent possession, they struggled to get past Room and a determined Curacao side as celebrations kicked off at the full-time whistle with the players running to surround Room, who equalled the record for the most number of saves in a single World Cup game.
ROOM BECOMES SUPERMAN
If you look at Curacao’s football history, Room’s place in it is significant. He was the first player to make the switch from the Netherlands and set the example for the rest of the players to follow. On Saturday, he showed his true class with a performance that would forever be part of Curacao folklore.
Both teams knew that they needed to win in Kansas City to keep their World Cup hopes alive and it was Ecuador had the earliest chance to break the deadlock. Enner Valencia, the leading goalscorer for Ecuador in history, got a long ball from Caicedo and went through on goal, and it seemed like the net was about to bulge. But then, Room came to the rescue with a point-blank save.
This was just the first of many saves made by the 37-year-old, who became the brickwall that Ecuador struggled to breach. He plays in the second division in the US, but pulled off a performance similar to the one Vozinha produced in the draw against Spain.
And it wasn’t just one-way traffic as Curacao did have some good moments in attack, but lacked the decision-making. Tahith Chong, often the playmaker when it comes to the Blue Wave attacks, had a chance early to send the ball to Floreanus, but made the wrong call.
From that point, it was all about Curacao surviving the pressure from Ecuador, with Room standing tall in goal. He made a save from Valencia, and then was called in later on to deny Plata. The Blue Wave was equally effective going forward as they forced Galindez to make a save late on.
CURACAO SHOW STEEL
Curacao showed throughout the first half that they were a threat going forward and resolute at the back. That continued after the break, with a wild sequence following in the 59th minute. It all started with a save by Room and a counter-attack starting from there.
Galindez, was untested throughout the game till that point, but was forced into three back-to-back saves. First, it was Leandro Bacuna and then Comanencia, and Locadia got denied.
At certain points in the game, it seemed like a Mexican duel between Valencia and Room as both veterans went at it. In the 65th minute, Room denied Valencia at the far post, his 10th save of the game. The 11th and 12th soon followed, as Ecuador kept knocking on the door.
But more than Curacao’s resistance, there was a bit of tardiness with Ecuador’s finishing as Piero Hincapie headed way over. They almost paid for it as Juninho Bacuna’s shot needed saving from Galindez in the end.
By the 80th minute, Room equalled the record as Ecuador continued to be frustrated in their search for the goal.
Valencia had a big chance to grab the winner in the 84th minute, but he sent his shot wide as Curacao survived. The tension was at an all-time high as Curacao held on and there was a penalty shout at the end for Ecuador. But the referee waved it on after VAR intervention.
And just like Cape Verde did, the performance was enough to earn the point.
GROUP E: QUALIFICATION SCENARIO
With the results on Saturday, Group E’s final automatic qualification spot will be a three-horse race in which Curacao does retain a big interest. For the island nation to qualify, they will need to beat Ivory Coast and hope that Germany does them a favour by beating Ecuador.
The issue will be their negative goal difference after the 1-7 loss to Germany in the opening match. For Ecuador, they will need to beat Germany and hope Curacao beat Ivory Coast. If the game ends in a draw, then Ecuador will need to beat Germany by a big margin to make it to the next round.
The final two matches of the group will happen on June 26.
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