Key events<\/p>\n
33 min: Cura\u00e7ao with another nice interception in midfield and stream forward with confidence, this time ending with a spinning shot attempt by Juninho Bacuna that comes to nothing.<\/p>\n
Cura\u00e7ao are making this a game! I\u2019m having a lot of fun.<\/p>\n
Share<\/a><\/p>\n 30 min: Another moment of loose possession by Ecuador<\/a>, pounced on by Juninho Bacuna, whose effort on goal was blocked by his own teammate Joshua Brenet.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 28 min: Ecuador playing forward much more directly after the break, with Valencia uncorking a shot from outside the box, right at Room who saves easily.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 27 min: The players are hydrated, and we\u2019re back under way.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Reader Stephen writes in:<\/p>\n Honestly, games like this are actually a decent advert for an expanded World Cup<\/a>. What\u2019s the problem with giving teams like little Curacao a dance on the biggest stage, particularly if they\u2019re playing like this? Cape Verde holds Spain to a draw, is that bad? It\u2019s not like they ordinarily get many opportunities such as this. Good luck to all the minnows, I\u2019m glad that they\u2019re grasping the opportunity with both fists.<\/p>\n I completely agree. Cura\u00e7ao<\/a> have been a very nice add to this tournament, in my opinion. They clearly lack the quality of a lot of other sides, but they come to play and aren\u2019t content just to sit back. That, IMO, speaks volumes for them and their place in this tournament. They\u2019ve been pretty good so far tonight, too.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 24 min: Cura\u00e7ao players are routinely needing to fight through two, three, four waves of Ecuador pressure to work the ball upfield. Occasionally, they do, and on this occasion they earn a foul.<\/p>\n Good time to take it quickly? Hah! No. It\u2019s hydration break time.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 22 min: Mois\u00e9s Caicedo is doing such a nice job dictating the tempo of this match, even if he is sometimes having to drop to almost behind his own center-backs in order to do it. Every positive move forward so far has started with him.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 20 min: A nicely worked opportunity on the left touchline results in a line-breaking service to Valencia, whose effort is saved by Room.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Reader Peter writes in:<\/p>\n From behind, Tahith Chong\u2019s bushy, dyed locks and blue-and-yellow kit are reminiscent of Colombia legend Carlos Valderrama in his 1994 World Cup<\/a> pomp. Thanks for the great memory Cura\u00e7ao!<\/p>\n I hadn\u2019t noticed this before but now it\u2019s all I can see. Valderrama of course no stranger to playing football at this stadium as a member of the Colorado Rapids, Miami Fusion (RIP), and Tampa Bay Mutiny (also RIP).<\/p>\n Tahith Chong on the move. Photograph: Anadolu\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a020.23 EDT<\/p>\n 18 min: Cura\u00e7ao having some real problems plying through a very aggressive Ecuador press. Finally they break through and find space, but Tahith Chong\u2019s effort in the box is blocked.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 16 min: Mois\u00e9s Caicedo plays a nice ball forward for Gonzalo Plata, who steps over the ball on the edge of the box and is dispossessed.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 14 min: Yeboah and Vite work a nice give-and-go along the right flank, with Vite attempting a curled shot in the box. It goes high and wide, but it\u2019s nice to see Ecuador<\/a> working possession for a chance like that.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 13 min: Another chance, this time from Yeboah along the right, and under-hit effort on goal well saved by Room.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 12 min: It seems like most of Ecuador\u2019s plan for this is to try to draw Cura\u00e7ao<\/a> forward then beat them over the top. It nearly worked on that early Valencia chance, and it\u2019s been tried 3 or 4 times more since then already.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 9 min: Once again, Cura\u00e7ao<\/a> works a good chance against the run of play, with Locadia feeding Juninho Bacuna who hit a low effort that was blocked.<\/p>\n \u2026.actually, looks like the whole play was offside. But still, another warning shot from the minnows.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 8 min: Just as I type that last update, Tahith Chong surges forward with the ball but his attempted service falls well short. There was a real opportunity there.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 5 min: It\u2019s early, but Cura\u00e7ao<\/a> is looking confident going forward. No clear chances yet but it\u2019s not hard to imagine them getting one.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n On replay, it\u2019s clear Enner Valencia found space between the center backs way too easily on that last chance, and their positioning allowed him to be onside for the long ball from the back. Room saved the backline but that can\u2019t keep happening if they hope to make history today.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n 2 min: A big chance, and a huge save by Eloy Room on Enner Valencia! He came out well to stop Valencia\u2019s effort after a long ball over the top.<\/p>\n Big early chance for Enner Valencia! Photograph: Reed Hoffmann\/APShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a020.06 EDT<\/p>\n 1 min: An early moment of nerves for Ecuador, knocking an easy pass along the backline out of bounds. Cura\u00e7ao<\/a> not looking afraid to press.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Kick-off<\/p>\n 1 min: We are under way!<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n A moment of appreciation for Sebasti\u00e1n Beccacece, coach of Ecuador<\/a>, and his excellent hair.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n The national anthem of Cura\u00e7ao<\/a> is next: Himno di K\u00f2rsou.<\/p>\n I\u2019m enjoying the brass-forward arrangement they\u2019re using for this.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n First off, it\u2019s the national anthem of Ecuador: Salve, Oh Patria (Hail, O Fatherland).<\/p>\n It sounds loud and boisterous in there.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n The giant flags are out, the players are in the tunnel, kick-off looms!<\/p>\n What are you all thinking will happen here? Can Cura\u00e7ao<\/a> pull off a gigantic upset?<\/p>\n Game on! Photograph: Reed Hoffmann\/APShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a019.57 EDT<\/p>\n From the early looks at Kansas City Stadium, this looks like it\u2019ll be a heavily pro-Ecuador crowd.<\/p>\n Not entirely surprising, as Cura\u00e7ao<\/a> has about the population of Macon, Georgia and Ecuador has, uh, way more than that.<\/p>\n Ecuador fans are filling in ahead of the game v Cura\u00e7ao. Photograph: Amy Kontras\/EPAShare<\/a><\/p>\n Two changes in the Cura\u00e7ao<\/a> lineup: Joshua Brenet replaces Riechedly Bazoer at center back. Juri\u00ebn Gaari also comes in at center back, with forward Sontje Hansen making way.<\/p>\n Two changes as well for Ecuador: Pervis Estupi\u00f1an replaces Joe Ordo\u00f1\u00e9z in defense, while Alan Minda makes way for Jordy Alc\u00edvar in midfield.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Reader Eric writes in:<\/p>\n Was the point to annoy all of Texas with the BBQ dig?<\/p>\n What dig?! Texas BBQ is great. All BBQ is great. It\u2019s just that Kansas City\u2019s is better, in the opinion of this not-at-all biased native Kansas Citian.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>The lineups are in!<\/p>\n Ecuador:<\/p>\n Hern\u00e1n Gal\u00edndez; Piero Hincapi\u00e9, Willian Pacho, Pervis Estupi\u00f1an; Alan Franco, Jordu Alc\u00edvar, Pedro Vite, Mois\u00e9s Caicedo, John Yeboah, Enner Valencia, Gonzalo Plata<\/p>\n Cura\u00e7ao:<\/p>\n Eloy Room; Joshua Brenet, Jurien Gaari, Armando Obispo, Sherel Floranus, Deveron Fonville; Tahith Chong, Livano Comenencia, Leandro Bacuna, Juninho Bacuna; J\u00fcrgen Locadia<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n The referee tonight is Ma Ning from China, where he has amassed quite a large fanbase (for a referee) owing to the country\u2019s failure to qualify for any World Cup<\/a> since 2002. He\u2019s a big enough deal to have attracted sponsorships from the likes of Lenovo and Hisense, according to the BBC.<\/p>\n Nicknamed the \u201ccard master\u201d owing to his strict approach, this will be Ma Ning\u2019s World Cup debut \u2013 the first game officiated by a Chinese referee since the 2002 edition.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a019.04 EDT<\/p>\n Elsewhere in Group E\u2026<\/p>\n Germany left it late but escaped with an important win against C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire, thanks to a late goal from Deniz Undav.<\/p>\n Read Leander Schaerlaeckens\u2019 match report:<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Preamble<\/p>\n Hello folks! Alexander Abnos here, and I\u2019m thrilled to be able to follow this match along with all of you.<\/p>\n Cura\u00e7ao enters the game on the back of a 7-1 drubbing by Germany. The lopsided scoreline was perhaps expected, what with Germany\u2019s status as a world power and Cura\u00e7ao being the smallest country ever to qualify for a World Cup<\/a>.<\/p>\n But then there were those 17 minutes. Those glorious, glorious 17 minutes. That was the amount of time between Liviano Comenencia\u2019s equalizer and Nico Schlotterbeck\u2019s goal to make it 2-1. In that period, Cura\u00e7ao<\/a> allowed their fans to party and to dream. If you love football and aren\u2019t an Ecuador fan, you\u2019ll be hoping for similar tonight.<\/p>\n