After conceding just five goals in 18 qualifying matches, Ecuador would have had two clean sheets at the World Cup so far – if Amad Diallo hadn’t scored the winning goal in the 90th minute for Ivory Coast in the opening match. But the defensive monument to violence does not scare Germany’s Jamie Leweling.
Die Mannschaft, who have already secured group victory in Group E, opened with a 7-1 win against Curaçao before turning around 2-1 against Ivory Coast with a goal after the 67th minute.
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“We will definitely find ways to break down their defense and score goals,” says Stuttgart player Leweling about La Tri.
“We know their players. They play at the highest level, they are dangerous. We have several players who haven’t played yet, and when they come in, they will give everything and bring joy to Germany – I can promise you that.
Captain Enner Valencia is the most likely candidate to end Ecuador’s 203-minute World Cup goal drought in a game they must win to have a chance of reaching the knockout stages.
The 49-goal scorer – the country’s all-time top scorer – had scored Ecuador’s previous six World Cup goals before Moisés Caicedo netted their last in a loss to Senegal in 2022.
“The headers he used to score earned him the nickname Superman,” teammate Piero Hincapié told FIFA about the 36-year-old.
“He was always there to encourage me, even during the tough times I’ve had here. He was always there for us as captain and gave us that extra drive to keep dreaming.
Ivory Coast and Curaçao meet in Philadelphia in the simultaneous final match of the group on Thursday.
| P | W | D | L | F | A | DG | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 2 | +7 |
| Côte d’Ivoire | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Ecuador | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -1 |
| Curaçao | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 | -6 |
World Cup 2026: Team news for Ecuador vs Germany
Ecuador brought in winger Pervis Estupiñán and defensive midfielder Jordy Alcívar for the 0-0 draw against Curaçao, but both were substituted – striker Kevin Rodríguez replaced Alcívar at half-time.
Germany’s defender Nico Schlotterbeck is out of the championship after a knee injury to his left ankle against the Ivory Coast.
Deniz Undav strengthened his claim for a starting place with two goals after coming into that game – and now has three goals in the championship. The only players to have scored more than the Stuttgart striker are Norway’s Erling Haaland and France’s Kylian Mbappé (both four) – as well as Argentina’s Lionel Messi with five.
Ecuador vs Germany: Predicted line-ups for the 2026 World Cup
Ecuador’s starting eleven (4-4-2): Hernán Galíndez – Alan Franco, Willian Pacho, Piero Hincapié – John Yeboah, Pedro Vite, Moisés Caicedo, Pervis Estupiñán – Gonzalo Plata, Kevin Rodríguez, Enner Valencia
Germany’s starting eleven (4-2-3-1): Oliver Baumann – Pascal Groß, Antonio Rüdiger, Waldemar Anton, David Raum – Nadiem Amiri, Assan Ouédraogo – Jamie Leweling, Maximilian Beier, Deniz Undav – Nick Woltemade
World Cup 2026: Ecuador vs Germany statistics
- Ecuador started the tournament as one of four countries with a goal difference of 0 in World Cup history, along with Bosnia and Herzegovina, Ireland and East Germany.
- This is Ecuador’s fifth World Cup participation. The only time they reached the knockout stages was in 2006, when they were knocked out by England in the last eight.
- Ecuador finished second behind Argentina in the CONMEBOL qualifiers – equalling their best ever qualifying performance (also in 2002).
- They had the strongest defence in the section, conceding just five goals in 18 games, and lost the fewest games – two away defeats to Argentina and Brazil.
- Valencia scored three goals in both 2014 and 2022, and was involved in more than half of Ecuador’s goals in qualifying – with six goals and two assists.
- Sebastián Beccacece is the fifth person to lead Ecuador in a World Cup – with three Colombians and two Argentines, including Beccacece.
- Germany enter the knockout stages for the first time since they won the World Cup 12 years ago.
- They bounced back from a 2-0 defeat in Slovakia in the opening match of qualifying – the first ever World Cup qualifying defeat away from home – and won all their remaining games, finishing 6-0 at home to the Falcons.
- Die Mannschaft won the championship in 1954, 1974, 1990 and 2014, but were knocked out by Bulgaria in the quarter-finals when the World Cup was held in the United States 32 years ago.
- Manuel Neuer was part of the triumph in 2014 and has 126 caps. Prior to these championships, the goalkeeper’s last international match was the Euro quarter-final loss to Spain in 2024.
- This is Julian Nagelsmann’s first World Cup as head coach. He is 38 years old and the youngest boss in the 2026 tournament. The last head coach to win the World Cup in the 30s was César Luis Menotti with Argentina in 1978 – when he was 39 years old.
World Cup 2026: Ecuador vs. Germany prediction
Ecuador 1-0 Germany
Ecuador had an expected goal value of over three against Curaçao – and kept a clean sheet in their last five qualifying matches, including a 1-0 win over Argentina and a draw against Brazil. With more to play for against a German B team, the odds of a surprise can be tempting.
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