The opening game of the 2022 World Cup played out a short time ago and it ended Qatar 0-2 Ecuador.

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Hosts Qatar kicked off the tournament with a clash against Ecuador on Sunday afternoon.

Despite being the hosts, Qatar were not expected to make it out of their group.

But if they wanted to stand any chance of doing so, they needed to pick up a win against Ecuador, who are arguably their easiest test.

But when all was said and done, Qatar fell to defeat.

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Ecuador thought they had took the lead within three minutes. Qatar’s goalkeeper left his line and then missed the ball, allowing Enner Valencia to fire into an open net.

However, VAR ruled the goal out for a reason nobody could really work out.

Qatar then gave away a penalty 14 minutes in and Ecuador took the lead this time.

After the opener, Ecuador continued to dominate possession whilst limiting Qatar’s attacking threat.

Valencia then added a second 31 minutes in with a sensational header.

The first 45 drew to a close with Ecuador 2-0 up and in full control of the match.

Ecuador were then fairly happy to take their foot off the gas somewhat in the second 45, still controlling the game but not creating as much.

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Qatar player ratings

Saad Al Sheeb (2) – Poor judgment when running for a cross, nearly allowing Ecuador to take an early lead before the bizarre VAR call. He then gave away a penalty 14 minutes in.

Bassam Al Rawi (3) – His passing was very poor and he failed to win a single ground duel.

Boualem Khoukhi (3) – Was poor in the air and gave away the ball on a number of occasions.

Abdelkarim Hassan (5) – Was Qatar’s best player in terms of dealing with Ecuador’s aerial threat.

Pedro Miguel (3) – Left Valencia unmarked for his second goal of the game.

Karim Boudiaf (3) – Was completely dominated in midfield, failing to win a ground duel and losing possession a lot.

Abdulaziz Hatem (4) – Ended the game with a woeful passing percentage.

Homam Ahmed (4) – Was ok defensively but had little impact going forward.

Hassan Al-Haydos (4) – Did not see enough of the ball to create much on the attacking front.

Almoez Ali (4) -Tried to create a few chances himself but struggled for any sort of service from his teammates.

Akram Afif (3) – Did not have a shot on target all game.

Substitutes

Mohammed Muntari (3)

Mohammed Al Bayati (3)

Ecuador player ratings

Hernán Galíndez (5) – Was not tested all match.

Ángelo Preciado (7) – Like Estupinan on the opposite flank, Precidado got forward a lot to help out in attack whilst also putting in a solid defensive shift, including setting up the second goal.

Félix Torres (6) – Dealt with the little attacking threat Qatar could muster up well.

Piero Hincapié (6) – Like Torres, Hincapie did not have much to do but dealt with what he had too well.

Pervis Estupiñán (6.5) – Caused Qatar problems all match with a number of impressive attacking runs from deep.

Gonzalo Plata (5) – Crossing was poor but he did track back and help out defensively.

Sebas Méndez (6) – Helped Ecoudor control the game from midfield, completing 94 per cent of his passes.

Moisés Caicedo (6) – Dominated midfield, linking defence and attack well.

Romario Ibarra (4.5) – Failed to offer much of an attacking threat before being subbed off.

Enner Valencia (9) – Good finish early on but VAR ruled it out. Scored a penalty 14 minutes in and added a second 15 minutes later with a great header.

Michael Estrada (6) – Was not as dominant as his strike partner but still threatened the Qatar goal on a few occasions.

Substitutes

Jeremy Sarmiento (5)

José Cifuentes (N/A)

Alan Franco (N/A)

José Cifuentes (4)

Kevin Rodriguez (N/A)

Follow all the actions, every second, every minute. THIS IS QATAR 2022 WORLD CUP!

Hurray! the wait is over! FIFA World Cup 2022 is finally here and Qatar vs Ecuador is the first game to take us underway. This is the first match of the tournament and no doubt is going to be an intriguing and highly controversial fixture in the 2022 World Cup.

This fixture has been slated to take place at the Al Bayt Stadium in Qatar on Sunday afternoon, at 17:00 as hosts Qatar battles Ecuador in the opening Group A match.

This is the first time that Qatar will be competing in the World Cup tournament and many nations caused controversy by FIFA’s decision to let Qatar host the tournament. Ecuador however make a return to the World Cup since they last played eight years ago. Though they qualified for the 2014 World Cup, their performance is a mediocre one as they only managed one win in their group stage matches which was not enough to see them through to the knockout stage of the competition.

Read also: Senegal vs Netherlands: Prediction, Team news and Lineup

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Qatar vs Ecuador Match Preview

© Reuters

The 2022 hosts hold the distinguished honor of opening the current World Cup, as local leagues take a pause so that the world’s elite can converge in the Middle East, just a week after Sepp Blatter said that Qatar should not have been given the World Cup in the first place.

Since Qatar was chosen to host the 2022 World Cup back in 2010, criticism has raised its ugly head; but, on the field, Sanchez Bas and his team of future legends have only worked to improve their chances of progressing past Group A.

The Maroon are now aspiring to be the first World Cup host to win their opening fixture since Senegal defeated then-defending champions France in 2002. In recent weeks, Guatemala, Honduras, Panama, and most previously Albania have all succumbed to Qatar’s supremacy, with star striker Almoez Ali scoring the only goal when they played against Albania.

Sanchez Bas’s team, on the contrary hand, is attempting to prevent being the second World World Cup hosts to not advance past the group stage, following South Africa in 2010. However, a win against Ecuador in this match would also make Qatar the first AFC country to win its first-ever World Cup fixture.

© Reuters

Not only Qatar, but Ecuador was also involved in the World Cup controversy before the start of the World Cup after they were found to have featured an ineligible player during their qualification round of the competition. Ecuador were threatened with elimination from the competition.

However, nothing of such happened, and the South American country is currently preparing to return to the World Cup tournament after they failed to qualify for Russia 2018, but have not been making great impacts at the World Cup thus far.

The pattern for Gustavo Alfaro’s team throughout their pregame warm-up phase has been clean sheets. Amazingly, Ecuador has secured six clean sheets from six matches since the beginning of June, while they are able to score only twice in the six matches, as they ended four of those fixtures in a goalless draw.

Last Saturday’s match between Ecuador and Iraq ended in another goalless draw for the Tricolor, and Qatar has already played their South American opponents thrice at home, going 1-0 up, 0-0, and losing to the team that will be looking to ruin the fun.

Qatar form (In all competitions):

• L
• D
• W
• W
• W
• W

Ecuador form (In all competitions):

• W
• D
• W
• D
• D
• D

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Team News

© Reuters

Ahead of this game, Qatar’s medical staff has been hard at work because forward Ahmed Alaaeldin, who was forced off against Albania last week after suffering an undisclosed injury has been predicted to miss their opener against Ecuador.

Ali, is currently the team’s joint-top scorer with 42 goals, could team up with Akram Afif in a two-man attack, and the two attackers will probably lead the attacking line for a Qatari team that is primarily a defensive team.

Abdelkarim Hassan, an international with 130 caps, should control a five-man defensive line, while the team skipper Hassan Al-Haydos, who is vying to replace Ali Asad, will aim for his 170th cap as an attacking midfielder.

Angelo Preciado or Robert Arboleda should therefore play in the right-back position for Ecuador, although Arboleda has only recently recovered from an ankle injury and will be a major doubt to start the game. Moises Caicedo, Carlos Gruezo, and Jeremy Sarmiento were not involved in Iraq either.

Gruezo has been exercising normally since recovering from a thigh problem, while Sarmiento will need a quick examination for a small muscular injury. Enner Valencia, who is currently Ecuador’s top goal scorer will lead the attack of the South Americans. 

Qatar possible starting lineup:

Below we have outlined Qatar possible starting lineup ahead of their class with Ecuador in the FIFA 2022 World Cup.

• GK: Al-Sheeb
• DEF: Miguel
• DEF: Al-Wari
• DEF: Salman
• DEF: Hassan
• DMF: Ahmed
• DMF: Hatem
• MID: Boudiaf
• MID: Al-Haydos
• FWD: Ali
• FWD: Afif

Ecuador possible starting lineup:

Below we have outlined Ecuador possible starting lineup ahead of their class with Qatar in the FIFA 2022 World Cup.

• GK: Dominguez
• DEF: Preciado
• DEF: Torres
• DEF: Hincapie
• DEF: Estupinan
• DMF: Gruezo
• DMF: Caicedo
• MID: Cifuentes
• MID: Plata
• FWD: Valencia
• AMF: Ibarra

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Qatar vs Ecuador Prediction

Qatar has no shortage of international-caliber players, so the Maroons will gain greatly from playing in their first World Cup match with an enthusiastic home audience behind them.

However, this Ecuadorian team has been known for its tenacious backline recently. While this trend may break here, the Tricolor’s star players can help them win the first game.

The game is going to be a tough one and it might seem quite difficult to predict which team will take home all three points. However, our team of expert tipsters has predicted that there will be few goals in the game and is liable to end in a draw.

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Top tip

Prediction	Meaning	Percentage of Accuracy
UNDER 2.5	The goals to be scored should not exceed 2 goals	75%
X2	Ecuador to win or draw	77%
UNDER 3.5	The goals to be scored should not exceed 3 goals	98%
10 min Draw	The game remains a draw after 10 minutes of play	99%