ECUADOR UNDER ALFARO'S COMMAND

The coach Gustavo Alfaro has ended his era at the helm of the Ecuadorian national team, as he did not reach an agreement for his continuity with the Ecuadorian Football Federation (FEF). The disconnection of the Argentine was made known this Thursday, after a few months of negotiations.

"The parties have decided to be free to evaluate new options for the benefit and development of their interests". With Alfaro, Ecuador qualified for the World Cup for the fourth time in its history, specifically for the Qatar 2022 World Cup, where they were eliminated in the group stage.

The president of the FEF, Francisco Egas, said that when he took on the challenge of leading the entity, a project was built that had the guarantee of the players' level, and that with Alfaro and his coaching staff, the group was enhanced.

"Therefore, the results speak for themselves, and as a Federation, we only have words of admiration for our extraordinary players and the process that was achieved, and gratitude for Gustavo Alfaro and his team", added the statement.

The FEF stated that after the World Cup, the moment has come "to build on what has been experienced" and look to the future.

Under Alfaro's management, Ecuador participated in the 2021 Copa America in Brazil, where they had three draws and one loss in the group stage, but were eliminated in the quarterfinals with a 3-0 loss to Argentina, who ended up as champions.

In the South American qualifiers for the Qatar 2022 World Cup, Ecuador won seven matches, drew five, and lost six, with 27 goals scored and 17 goals conceded, which was enough to qualify directly by finishing in fourth place.