FIFA World Cup 2022: Enner Valencia comes in rescue as Ecuador vs Netherlands ends 1-1

On the sixth day of the ongoing FIFA World Cup, the Netherlands locked horns with Ecuador in Khalifa International Stadium. Both teams were coming off after a win in their respective tournament openers. The Netherlands were coming off after a win against Senegal by 2-0. On the other hand, Ecuador defeated the host nation Qatar by 2-0 in their opening fixture.

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So, both teams were looking to continue their winning momentum in this tournament. Cody Gakpo, the Dutch youngster made headlines when he scored the first goal for his country against Senegal. For Ecuador, their skipper Enner Valencia scored a brace to break the hearts of Qatar fans.  

Ecuador and the Netherlands settled for a draw in FIFA World Cup 2022

Speaking of the match, the Netherlands started the match with more intensity than their opponent. In the sixth minute only, the youngster Cody Gakpo rose to the occasion again as he put his country ahead. Davy KLASSEN came up with an assist and Gakpo managed to score a stunner with his left foot.

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Thus, Gakpo managed to score two goals in two matches so far in the tournament. Then, Ecuador responded positively with some quick attacks. But, they failed to convert those chances. In the stoppage time of the first half, they managed to score a goal. But, it got disallowed as the referee called it an offside. Therefore, their equalizer got denied and the first half ended 1-0. 

In the second half, it did not take long to score the equalizer for Ecuador. Again, their skipper, Enner Valencia scored a simple tap-in to a loose ball from the Dutch keeper in the 49th minute. It was Valencia’s third goal in this year’s tournament. Ecuador came to take a lead in the 59th minute. But, Gonzalo PLATA’s shot hit the woodwork and the Netherlands survived. Then, both teams tried to take a lead. But, the match ended at 1-1. With this result, the host nation Qatar got crashed out of the tournament.