Germany needed just two minutes on matchday three of the World Cup group stage to open the scoring. Florian Wirtz provided the assist, and Leroy Sané finished to give them an early lead. By the ninth minute the advantage was gone, as Nilson Angulo converted a pass from Pedro Vite to equalise for Ecuador. This opening spell set the tone for the entire match: Germany had more possession, but Ecuador remained closer to goal in the decisive moments.
Shortly before half-time the game turned physical. Piero Hincapié was shown a yellow card in the 43rd minute, followed a minute later by Aleksandar Pavlović on the German side. At the break, Germany responded by bringing on Angelo Stiller for Pavlović. After the restart, a VAR review was conducted in the 47th minute before Alan Franco received the next yellow card for Ecuador in the 50th minute.
In the middle period both teams made a further seven substitutions combined; of those changes, Kevin Rodriguez proved particularly important after coming on for Ecuador in the 64th minute. The key moment arrived in the 77th minute, when Rodriguez set up the attack and Gonzalo Plata finished to make it 2-1. Ecuador had thus extracted the maximum from comparatively few attempts at the critical moments.
For Ecuador, Felix Torres replaced John Yeboah and Jordy Caicedo came on for Angulo in the 85th minute. In the 89th minute Plata was shown a yellow card for a foul, but it made no difference to the narrow lead.
The statistics matched the impression of a game Germany controlled but Ecuador won. Germany finished with 61 per cent possession and eleven shots; Ecuador had 39 per cent and seven attempts. Both sides put three shots on target - Ecuador converted two of them, Germany only one. Angulo, with his early equaliser and numerous duels won, was the standout player for the hosts.
For Ecuador, the 2–1 result marked a crucial victory on the third matchday of the group stage. A win that served as a spirited response to falling behind early and secured third place in the group. Germany, meanwhile, had to accept that possession and a higher number of shots counted for little without decisive final actions. After 90 minutes, the focus for both teams shifted to the group standings: Ecuador had qualified for the knockout stage, while Germany - despite finishing at the top of the group - was left to contemplate the consequences of the defeat.
