Brazil vs Ecuador

Estádio José Pinheiro Borda is the venue as Brazil and Ecuador go head-to-head in an intriguing World Cup Qualifying encounter.

The hosts have enjoyed a stellar start to their World Cup Qualifying campaign as they head into proceedings as the only side to win all four qualifying fixtures so far. Except for a narrow 1-0 home win over Venezuela on Matchday 3, each of Brazil’s remaining three qualifying victories has yielded a winning margin of 2+ goals, with the ‘Selecao’ netting over 1.5 first-half goals twice in the process. Coming into this clash, Tite’s men have won each of their last seven World Cup Qualifying games on home soil without conceding, with the last time they failed to keep a clean sheet in such a contest dating back to September 2016. Bringing the previous World Cup Qualifying series into the equation, the five-time World Cup champions have suffered just one defeat in their last 22 qualifying matches (W16, D5).

Meanwhile, the visitors have picked themselves up following a 1-0 away loss to Argentina in their World Cup Qualifying curtain-raiser, racking up a three-match winning streak since. Virtually unstoppable in the front third, Ecuador netted 3+ goals on each occasion during that three-game sequence, tallying a total of 13. Particularly prolific after the half-time break, they have scored 2+ second-half goals in each of their last three qualifying fixtures. Worryingly, though, ‘La Tri’ have lost seven consecutive away World Cup Qualifying games against the nations ranked above them at the time of the draw for this World Cup Qualifying campaign. Additionally, they have lost their last five World Cup Qualifying trips to Brazil, conceding an average of 2.6 goals per match.