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Ecuador came from behind to defeat Germany 2-1 on Thursday night at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, securing a place in the round of 32 despite entering the match without a single goal in the tournament.
Leroy Sane gave Germany the lead just two minutes into the contest, but Nilson Angulo equalized in the ninth minute with a bending strike from outside the penalty area, ending Ecuador's 242-minute scoreless run at the competition. Gonzalo Plata then prodded home the decisive goal in the 77th minute, poking a flick-on from Kevin Rodriguez past Manuel Neuer to settle the match.
The result leaves Ecuador third in Group E with four points, enough to place them among the top third-placed teams and, by Opta's projection at full-time, a 66.27 percent chance of advancing. Germany, already qualified before kickoff, finish top of the group ahead of Ivory Coast on head-to-head record.
Ecuador, coached by Sebastian Beccacece, had arrived at the fixture in a precarious position, having drawn 0-0 with Curacao and lost 1-0 to Ivory Coast in their first two group matches. Only a victory would realistically keep their World Cup alive.
Germany's opening goal threatened to extinguish those hopes almost immediately. Florian Wirtz threaded a pass through to Sane, who finished with his left foot into the bottom corner. Referee Victoria Penso briefly considered an offside following a high boot from Aleksandar Pavlovic in the buildup, but VAR cleared the goal.
Ecuador's response was swift. Pedro Vite dispossessed Felix Nmecha in midfield and slipped the ball to Angulo, who bent a shot into the bottom-right corner from range. It was Ecuador's first goal of the tournament, coming on their 40th shot attempt across three matches.
For the remainder of the first half, Ecuador grew into the game. Germany, having already secured knockout qualification, appeared flat and gave the ball away repeatedly, and Ecuador pressed high and generated the more consistent pressure despite finishing the opening 45 minutes with just 0.04 expected goals against Germany's 0.37.
The second half opened with drama when Penso pointed to the penalty spot after a challenge on Havertz in the box, only to reverse the decision after reviewing a foul by Sane on Vite in the buildup.
Germany introduced Deniz Undav and other substitutes as the hour mark approached, but it was Ecuador who controlled the tempo. Moises Caicedo completed the most passes in the match, and midfielder Pedro Vite finished the evening with nine tackles, the most by an Ecuadorian player on record at the World Cup since 1966.
The decisive moment arrived from a corner in the 77th minute. Rodriguez met the delivery at the near post, nodding the ball into the path of Plata, who got in front of the hesitant Neuer and guided it home with his left foot. It was only the second time Ecuador had won a World Cup match after conceding first, following a 2-1 victory over Honduras in 2014.
Germany pressed in the final minutes but produced little of substance. Neuer, who conceded four goals across the group stage while making only three saves, was unable to prevent Ecuador from seeing out the win.
Despite the defeat, Germany finished Group E with six points from their first two wins, including a 7-1 demolition of Curacao and a 2-1 win over Ivory Coast. They top the group ahead of second-place Ivory Coast, who finished their group stage with a 2-0 win over Curacao.
Ecuador's place in the knockouts depends on how the rest of the third-placed sides perform across the tournament's other groups. A potential round-of-32 meeting with England, depending on results in Group L, could await Beccacece's side.
Curacao finish bottom of the group with a single point.
Ecuador produced just seven shots on the night and registered 1.51 expected goals, compared to Germany's 0.65, in what amounted to a disciplined and resolute performance under pressure. For a side that entered the match having never scored at this World Cup, it was, by any measure, a significant night.
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