Copa America 2024 Team Previews: Ecuador
The 2024 Copa America begins on June 20th in the United States, with six CONCACAF teams set to compete in the tournament. Over the next couple of weeks, we will preview every team playing in the competition. Up next are 2022 World Cup participants: Ecuador!
Ranked 31st in the latest FIFA rankings, the Ecuadorian National Team is one of the underrated teams from CONMEBOL. While not as threatening as Argentina or Brazil, Ecuador is a team to keep an eye on as a dark horse.
Copa America Appearances
Ecuador is no guest to the Copa America, as this will be Ecuador’s 30th appearance in the tournament. It is a familiar game for the national team, but Ecuador can do better in the competition.
Best Finish in Copa America
For a national team that will play in their 30th Copa America, you’d think they would have won at least one. Right? Nope. The best finish for the Ecuador National Team is fourth-place, in the 1953 and 1993 editions of the tournament.
Key Players
“La Tri” will have Bayer Leverkusen and Bundesliga winner Piero Hincapié, bringing the championship mentality to a squad that hasn’t won a Copa in their history. Another player from the Bundesliga to be part of Ecuador’s squad is Eintracht Frankfurt center-back Willian Pacho.
“La Tri” will have Brighton winger Jeremy Sarmiento as the attacking option. Ecuador will also have Chelsea’s Moises Caicedo to hold down the midfield.
Manager
Ecuador will have Spaniard Felix Sanchez heading into the Copa America. Sanchez has experience coaching the Qatar National Team at the 2022 World Cup but ultimately were eliminated in the group stage.
Biggest Game — vs Jamaica on June 26th
Ecuador is extremely lucky to be facing Venezuela in the opening matchup of the group stage. The best team seems to be Mexico in a weak group, so closing the group stage against Mexico is a plus. However, an underrated Jamaica side can prevent them from qualifying after two games. If they can win against Jamaica, they won’t have to worry about Mexico in the final group-stage match.
Prediction
For my prediction for the Copa America, Ecuador will finish third in their group behind Mexico and Jamaica. Maybe Ecuador will finally win the competition in their 31st Copa America.
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