Ecuador will be up against France in their final Group E match in the FIFA World Cup 2014. There is a lot at stake for Ecuador as the two sides clash at the historic Maracana stadium in Rio de Janeiro on Wednesday, June 25.
Ecuador have 3 points from 2 games going into this match and will need a victory to have a chance of qualification to the second round, for if Switzerland win their game against Honduras, that will be the end of the road for the South Americans.
France on the other hand have qualification to the next round assured. However, the Les Bleus will be looking to continue their winning run and finish on top of Group E as they would certainly like to avoid Argentina in the next round.
Ecuador lost to Switzerland in the opener but came back strongly to defeat Honduras. All 3 goals that Ecuador have scored at the world cup in Brazil this year have come from Enner Valencia, who has had a fantastic tournament so far.
They have some decent players in the forms of Antonio Valencia, Felipe Caicedo, and Jefferson Montero. All these players have been playing in Europe for a while now and will command a certain respect on the pitch. One would expect this team to give France problems in the middle considering the fact that they play with unity and are determined to succeed this year.
France on the other hand have been one of the best teams in the Group stages at the ongoing edition of the world cup. They have certainly been one of the most entertaining sides in the cup so far. The Les Bleus started their campaign with a 3-0 win over Honduras which was followed by a 5-2 mauling of the Swiss.
Both games saw Karim Benzema in excellent form. The Real Madrid striker was denied a hat-trick in the first match as the referee ruled one of his strikes as an own goal. In the next game, the France number 10 looked even more involved in the game as he scored one and laid on a couple for his teammates with France overpowering Switzerland.
While they need to improve a tad bit defensively, it is highly unlikely for Ecuador to cause much problems for Raphael Varane and Mamadou Sakho. With Paul Pogba manning defensive midfield and Yohan Cabaye pulling the strings from midfield, the French are a handful. Antoine Griezmann and Mathieu Valbuena have also impressed from the wings and should be able to give Ecuador plenty of problems as the two teams face off on Wednesday.