SWITZERLAND, ECUADOR, FRANCE, HONDURAS

ROCK SOLID: Ecuador ' s defender Walter Ayovi( L) is marked by Colombia ' s defender Carlos Enrique Valdes during their World Cup qualifier match.

BRIEFLY: While Ecuador failed to extricate themselves from a tough group at Korea / Japan 2002, their first-ever appearance at the final stages of a FIFA World Cup, the story was quite different at Germany 2006, where the South Americans got as far as the last 16, having surprisingly finished second in their pool behind the host nation. Unfortunately for the CONMEBOL representatives, England would prove a hurdle too high; the Three Lions triumphed 1-0 to move on to the quarterfinals.

MISSION: There ' s no doubting Ecuador have talented attacking players but there are a paucity of topclass defenders. Their results away from Quito, the altitude sicknessinducing capital, do not bode well either. They only dropped two points at home, against Argentina, but failed to win a

STAR MAN

ANTONIO VALENCIA: The winger started life playing barefoot on a field near his house in the Amazon rain forest, and ended up a Manchester United star. He has scored eight goals in 69 caps for his country.

Valencia’ s pace and defensive acumen will be of great benefit to

single away qualifier, taking just three points from those eight games.

Wingers Antonio Valencia and Christian Noboa, as well as forwards Felipe Caicedo and Jefferson Montero, represent an exciting new wave for Ecuadorian football, but they are also ably assisted by a handful of evergreen stalwarts w i t h E u r o p e a n experience, such as Edison Mendez, Walter Ayovi and Segundo Castillo. They will fancy their chances of progressing to the next round.

PREPARATION: Ecuador were plagued by inconsistency during t h e i r q u a l i f y i n g

KEY MAN

COACH REINALDO RUEDA: Colombian Reinaldo Rueda only played at amateur level but he has the Midas touch as an international coach. He built an excellent reputation with Colombia ' s youth teams and senior side before guiding unheralded Honduras to the 2010 World Cup, for which he was granted citizenship of the Central American

Paredes

JEFFERSON MONTERO: Mexico-based left winger Jefferson Montero is a difficult individual opponent. He scored three goals during the qualifying campaign and attracted interest over the summer from a host of Premier League clubs, with Cardiff making a failed bid. campaign. While La Tricolor went undefeated at home, beating every opponent in Quito except Argentina, with whom they drew, the side was unable to reproduce that form on the road, failing to win at all and drawing just three times. Nevertheless, one such stalemate – against Uruguay in Montevideo – proved decisive as Ecuador finished level on points with La Celeste but grabbed the last automatic qualifying spot thanks to their superior goal difference( four compared to Uruguay’ s zero).

A 4-2 friendly defeat to a second-string German side, where the Ecuadoreans found themselves four goals behind after only 23 minutes, in May was a rude awakening. Their 4-0 defeat to Argentina in the qualifiers has also raised doubts about their ability to defend against world-class opposition.

HIGH POINT: Agustin Delgado caps a man of the match display at Hamburg in 2006 with a goal in the 3-0 win over Costa Rica which took them to the knockout stages in a finals for the first time.

LOW POINT: Ecuador play at 100mph at all times, so when they ' re asked to slow down and commit fewer men forward, they tend to struggle. It ' s not a trait that bodes well for tournament football as the best managers craft careful gameplans to take on individual

STRONGEST LINE-UP

A. Valencia

Caicedo

Guagua

Domínguez

Castillo

Montero

Ayoví

Noboa

FORMATION: 4-3-3

E. Valencia

Erazo

WORLD CUP HISTORY Ecuador ' s first World Cup was 2002, when they

finished bottom of their group. Four years later, they won two group games but lost to England in the last 16. Previous World Cup appearances( 2): 2002,

ROAD TO BRAZIL 2014 Ecuador were second in the South American standings after 10 matches but only won one of their last six matches. Crucially, that victory in the penultimate fixture was against nearest rivals Uruguay to all-but secure the last automatic qualifying spot. Coach Rueda dedicated the achievement to key forward Christian Benitez, who died suddenly in July 2013 from heart failure.

l20 / 06 Curitiba HON vs ECU l25 / 06 Rio De Janeiro ECU vs FRA

KEY

MAN FELIPE CAICEDO: The burly Lokomotiv Moscow striker didn’ t make much impact at Manchester City, but moving to Russia has improved him and he will spearhead Ecuador ' s attack in Brazil.

Caiced’ s strength is his strongest

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