When referee Mary Victoria Penso blew the final whistle in New Jersey, Ecuador Sebastian Beccacece clambered over the stadium barriers to celebrate with his family.
The head coach embraced his loved ones. Germany had been beaten. It was an emotional moment for Beccacece, for whom the final group-stage fixture could have been his last game in charge of Ecuador.
The Argentine tactician had said beforehand that he expected to step down if his side failed to reach the World Cup knockout stages.
There were reports of a verbal confrontation between members of Beccacece’s family and supporters after their goalless draw against Curacao last week.
“We have the possibility of moving forward and, if things don’t work, I will have to leave a place I love very much but I know it’s all about results,” he said in Wednesday’s pre-match news conference.
And for large parts of the game, it looked like both Ecuador and their manager were on their way out.
But the scenes at full-time after a famous 2-1 victory, which secured their place in the knockout stages for only the second time in history, suggested he has earned more time at the helm – not least because of the fighting spirit his side displayed to beat the four-time world champions.
Ecuador’s World Cup qualification campaign began with a three-point deduction slapped on them back in 2022 for fielding Colombia-born Byron Castillo, who Chile claimed was ineligible to play the qualifiers for the World Cup in Qatar.
They began the 2026 qualifiers under Felix Sanchez, who guided them to three wins from six matches before the former Qatar boss was dismissed in July 2024, straight after a Copa America quarter-final defeat by Argentina.
“They lost the shootout, and Sanchez was sacked in the dressing room after the game,” South American football expert Tim Vickery told BBC Sport.
“They treat their coaches with great harshness.”
Beccacece reign began with a 1-0 defeat by Brazil but his side did not lose again in 11 matches as they qualified for the World Cup as runners-up in South America – only behind the Selecao.
It meant they arrived at the tournament with high expectations and boasting a 19-game unbeaten run.
But it was far from the start they or their supporters had hoped for.
A last-gasp 1-0 defeat by Ivory Coast in the opener was followed by a humiliating goalless draw with debutants Curacao – which turned the fans against the coach.
“I am very sorry I didn’t make it to the heart of the Ecuadorean fan,” he had said.
“For the fans who don’t know me, I think I didn’t quite click with them. There is something they don’t like with me and that is fine.”
After no playing career of note, Beccacece earned his reputation as an assistant to Jorge Sampaoli during Chile’s era of success a decade ago – helping them to reach the 2014 World Cup and secure their first-ever Copa America title in 2015.
He was also Sampaoli’s assistant at the 2018 World Cup with Argentina while he was in charge of Spanish side Elche before joining Ecuador.
Having now masterminded Ecuador’s turnaround at the World Cup, the 45-year-old has perhaps achieved the biggest feat of his managerial career.
Ecuador, who first qualified for the World Cup in 2002, are making their fifth appearance in 2026.
But only once before have they made it past the group stage – in 2006 when a team captained by Ivan Hurtado made it out of their group alongside hosts Germany only to be beaten by David Beckham’s free-kick as England beat them 1-0 in the last 16.
Twenty years on, they might have set up another meeting with England and will feel much better-equipped this time around.
Beccacece has top-quality players such Paris St-Germain’s Willian Pacho and Arsenal’s Piero Hincapie in defence, Chelsea’s Moises Caicedo in midfield and an evergreen Enner Valencia – now aged 36 – who has six career World Cup goals to his name.
And there is no doubting they would be stubborn opposition in the knockout stage.
BBC
