The defending world champions, Argentina will resume their quest for the 2026 World Cup by hosting Ecuador at the Monumental.
The defending world champions, Argentina will resume their quest for the 2026 World Cup by hosting Ecuador at the Monumental for their 2026 World Cup qualifier. Ecuador also reached the finals in Qatar and will be confident of qualifying for another tournament. Added to that, CONMEBOL now has six automatic places with an additional playoff spot on top.
It will be Argentina’s first competitive game since the heroics in Qatar. Lionel Scaloni will hope his side can continue their fine unbeaten run. Last time, Saudi Arabia ended their phenomenal 36-game unbeaten streak in Qatar. Since that shock defeat, Argentina have won all the matches they have played. With the finals still three years away, it is tough to tell whether Lionel Messi will stick around for a sixth World Cup. Nevertheless, he is still in the squad and is in scintillating form at Inter Miami over the summer. Messi is the man Ecuador will be most focused on stopping when they face the most daunting teams in world football.
On the other hand, Ecuador has navigated South American qualification consummately in recent years. Added to this, Ecuador reached four of the last six World Cups. However, once they reach major tournaments their form often deserts them. Three of those four World Cup finals have seen them eliminated at the group stages. The 2022 World Cup saw them beat hosts Qatar in the tournament opener. However, they froze against Senegal in the group decider and crashed out sooner than hoped. Nevertheless, this time with the likes of Estupinan and Caicedo, they should provide some challenge to Lionel Messi’s Argentina.
Argentina’s probable starting lineup: E Martinez, Molina, Romero, Otamendi, Tagliafico, De Paul, Mac Allister, Alvarez, Messi, L Martinez, Di Maria
Ecuador’s probable starting lineup: Galindez, Preciado, Torres, Arboleda, Pacho, Estupinan, Plata, Caicedo, Gruezo, Mena, Valencia
Argentina
| Opponents | Score |
| Indonesia | 0-2 (W) |
| Australia | 2-0 (W) |
| Curacao | 7-0 (W) |
| Panama | 2-0 (W) |
| France | 3-3 (W) (p.s.o 4-2) |
Ecuador
| Opponents | Score |
| Costa Rica | 1-3 (W) |
| Bolivia | 1-0 (W) |
| Australia | 1-2 (W) |
| Australia | 3-1 (L) |
| Senegal | 1-2 (L) |
| Last 5 match-results | Score |
| Ecuador draw Argentina | 1-1 |
| Argentina beat Ecuador | 3-0 |
| Argentina beat Ecuador | 1-0 |
| Argentina beat Ecuador | 6-1 |
| Argentina beat Ecuador | 3-1 |
The World Cup Qualifier match between Argentina vs Ecuador will take place at the Estadio Más Monumental on Friday at 5:30 am IST.
| Austria vs Moldova | Key Details |
| Date | September 7 (Argentina) |
| Venue | Estadio Más Monumental |
| Kickoff time in Argentina | 9:00 pm (Thursday) |
| Kickoff time in Ecuador | 7:00 pm (Thursday) |
| Kickoff time in India | 5:30 am (Friday) |
Football fans in Argentina can livestream the match through Televisión Pública, TyC Sports Argentina and TyC Sports Play. Meanwhile, those in Ecuador can watch the game on TyC Sports Internacional and Canal del Futbol.
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