Ecuador beats Germany to reach World Cup knockout stage

Ecuador’s 2-1 comeback over Germany at New York/New Jersey Stadium sent Sebastián Beccacece’s side into the World Cup round of 32. Leroy Sane scored for Germany in the 2nd minute, Nilson Angulo answered in the 9th, and Gonzalo Plata completed the turnaround in the 77th.

The result carried Ecuador into the knockout stage as one of the eight best third-place teams and gave the country only its second passage beyond the group phase at a World Cup, after Germany 2006. This is Ecuador’s fifth appearance at the finals and its second in a row, following Qatar 2022.

Beccacece’s team finished second in South American qualifying behind Argentina, won five matches, drew six, and conceded only one goal in 11 games. Moisés Caicedo and Willian Pacho gave the side structure in the middle and at the back, while Enner Valencia made his ninth World Cup appearance for Ecuador.

A day later in Los Angeles, Turkey closed its tournament with a 3-2 victory over the United States, a result sealed by Kaan Ayhan’s winner in the 98th minute. The Americans struck first through Auston Trusty in the 3rd minute and levelled again through Sebastian Berhalter in the 49th, but Turkey kept coming back after early setbacks, with Arda Güler and Barış Yılmaz also on the scoresheet before Ayhan delivered the late finish.

The United States made nine changes to its lineup from the previous match, and Mauricio Pochettino rotated the team. FIFA recorded eight goals for the Americans, their highest-scoring World Cup campaign, and Arda Güler was Turkey’s youngest World Cup scorer.