Curitiba, Sep 07, 2024, IANS

Curitiba (Brazil), Sep 7 (IANS) Real Madrid forward Rodrygo's first-half goal powered Brazil to a narrow 1-0 win over Ecuador in the South American World Cup qualifiers on Friday (local time). Five-time World Cup winners registered their first win after three consecutive losses in the qualifiers. With 10 points, Brazil have moved to fourth place in the standings, eight points behind leaders Argentina and only two points ahead of sixth-placed Ecuador. The top six teams will advance to the 2026 World Cup. In their first match since losing to Uruguay in the Copa America quarter-finals, Brazil had another disappointing game. Although they dominated possession, they struggled to create clear chances and seemed out of ideas on how to break down Ecuador’s solid defense. Brazil made too many misplaced passes and couldn't find a way to connect in the attack. Ecuador applied high, aggressive pressure with their three forwards, making it tough for Brazil to play comfortably. Ecuador gave Brazil no space inside the box, forcing them to move the ball around the penalty area and take long-range shots. Brazil’s only two shots on target in the first half came from Rodrygo. He nearly scored from a free kick early on, and in the 29th minute, he got lucky when his shot from the edge of the box deflected off a defender, fooling the goalkeeper and bouncing off the post into the net. Ecuador almost equalised just before halftime, but defender Gabriel Magalhaes made a last-minute goal-line clearance to deny Moises Caicedo. The second half was worse for Brazil, with Vinicius Jr creating their only shot on target in an uninspired 45 minutes. The crowd booed as the final whistle blew, reflecting the team’s poor performance. "We needed this win, doesn't matter if it was ugly or not. I'm happy with the victory and to have scored, and I hope it helps us getting better and progressing to the level that we want to reach moving forward," Rodrygo told Brazilian TV Globo. Brazil will next take on Paraguay at Asuncion while Ecuador will host Peru in Quito on Wednesday.