Ecuador’s 0-0 With Curacao: Most Shots Without a Goal Since 1966

Ecuador · World Cup

—The result. Ecuador drew nil-nil with World Cup debutants Curacao in Kansas City on June 20.

—The headline number. Ecuador put 15 shots on target, the most in a men’s World Cup match without a goal since at least 1966, per ESPN.

—The wall. Curacao keeper Eloy Room made 15 saves, the most by any goalkeeper in 90 minutes of a World Cup game on record.

—Expected goals. Ecuador generated 3.05 expected goals to Curacao’s 0.48, and still did not score.

—Two-game misery. Across both matches Ecuador have taken roughly 55 shots, hit the woodwork three times against Ivory Coast, and scored zero goals.

—What is left. Ecuador almost certainly must beat Germany on June 25, a side they have never beaten.

The Ecuador Curacao result reads like a misprint: one of South America’s form teams dominated a tiny island debutant for ninety minutes, created chance after chance, and still walked off with nothing.

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Some football matches defy the numbers. Ecuador’s goalless draw with Curacao on June 20 in Kansas City is one of them, and the statistics make the case better than any post-match quote.

Ecuador attempted 28 shots and put 15 of them on target. According to ESPN, that is the most shots on target in a men’s World Cup match without a goal since at least 1966, when the statistic was first tracked.

To put the opponent in context, Curacao are the smallest nation by population ever to reach a World Cup, with about 158,000 people. Germany had beaten them seven-one a week earlier.

Ecuador Curacao by the numbers

The expected-goals model tells the same story. Ecuador created chances worth more than three expected goals, against Curacao’s roughly half a goal, and converted none of them.

In plain terms, expected goals estimates how many times an average side would have scored from the same chances. A figure above three with no goal is the kind of outlier that happens only a handful of times a tournament.

The man who made it happen was Curacao goalkeeper Eloy Room. The thirty-seven-year-old made 15 saves, the most by any keeper in 90 minutes of a World Cup match on record, having conceded seven against Germany only days before.

Captain Enner Valencia was the chief victim, denied twice from close range in the first half alone. When Room was finally beaten in stoppage time, Ángelo Preciado’s effort clipped the crossbar and stayed out.

A two-game streak of bad luck

This was not a one-off. Ecuador’s opening defeat to Ivory Coast followed an almost identical script, lost one-nil to a 90th-minute goal after hitting the woodwork three separate times.

Add the two games together and the picture is stark. By The Rio Times’ count, Ecuador have taken roughly 55 shots across their two matches, struck the frame of the goal three times, faced a record-equalling goalkeeping display, and scored exactly zero goals.

Statistically, a team that registers 15 shots on target in a single game scores in the overwhelming majority of cases. To do it and draw a blank, in the same week your attack also hit the post three times, is close to the limit of what bad luck can produce.

There is a deeper pattern, too. Ecuador leaned on goalless draws all through qualifying, recording eight nil-nil results in eighteen games, so a shortage of finishing is not new.

Much of the burden falls on Enner Valencia, the veteran captain who has scored nearly fifty international goals. The next most prolific man in the squad has barely a sixth of that tally, which leaves Ecuador dangerously reliant on one finisher.

What it means for Ecuador

The consequence is brutal. With a single point from two games, Ecuador sit third in Group E and, on the official tournament table, almost certainly need to beat group winners Germany on June 25 to stay alive (FIFA standings).

That is a tall order. Ecuador have never beaten Germany in any meeting, and lost their only previous World Cup encounter, three-nil in 2006.

A side that cannot stop creating chances now has to take them against the best defence it has faced. The cruel irony is that Ecuador’s problem has never been making chances, only finishing them.

Connected Coverage

For the match that started this run, read how Ecuador fell to a late Ivory Coast winner. For the build-up to the Curacao game, see why Ecuador’s World Cup hung on the result.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many shots did Ecuador have against Curacao?

Ecuador attempted 28 shots and put 15 on target, the most shots on target in a men’s World Cup match without scoring since at least 1966, according to ESPN.

Who is the Curacao goalkeeper who stopped Ecuador?

Eloy Room, aged thirty-seven, made 15 saves, the most by any goalkeeper in 90 minutes of a World Cup match on record, just days after conceding seven goals against Germany.

What does Ecuador need to reach the knockouts?

Ecuador almost certainly must beat Germany on June 25 to advance, a daunting task against a side they have never beaten in any competitive or friendly meeting.

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