Argentina vs Ecuador Live Stream: Watch World Cup 2018 Qualifiers Online
Argentina will play Ecuador on Tuesday night in a must win game for Lionel Messi's home nation. Today's make or break game has a scheduled start time of 7.30 p.m. ET and takes place from the Estadio Olympic Atahualpa in Ecuador. The game can be watched online through live stream (details below).
No one knows quite how Argentina have gotten themselves into this predicament, given the host of world class soccer talent they have in their national squad, but nevertheless the situation they face today is win or fail to make the World Cup in 2018.
Coming into today's game Argentina lie in 6th position out of the 10 teams in the South American World Cup qualifying table after picking up just 25 points from their 17 games.
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However, luckily for them even at this late stage things are so tight that a win should get them through.
Above them in 5th spot is Peru who are also on 25 points from their 17 games, and ahead in 3rd and 4th spots are Chile and Columbia respectively. Both of those teams have just a single point advantage over Argentina as they enter this final round of games, and both have just one goal better in goal differential, meaning there is plenty of room for Messi's nation to get themselves back into the automatic qualification spots.
Their opposition tonight is Ecuador, whose hopes of qualifying for the World Cup are already over. They currently lie in 8th position after picking up just 20 points from their 17 games.
Argentina coach Jorge Sampaoli has tried to brush off the lukewarm way his team has gone about the qualification stage, and has insisted that he is "very confident" that his team can get the result they need tonight.
If he is wrong, Argentina will miss out on the World Cup for the first time since 1970 - unthinkable given how many world class players are in their current team.
The goal for Argentina is simply to win tonight and hope it will be enough to get them one of the top four spots in the group, which would guarantee them a spot at the World Cup next year in Russia.
Sampaoli has said, "It depends on us. I'm very confident that if we play with the conviction that we did [against Peru] then we are going to be in the World Cup."
Of course the way Argentina played against Peru last Friday was only good enough for a draw.
However, they play an Ecuador team that has lost its last five straight qualification games. So they are not in good shape. On the other hand, Argentina have not defeated Ecuador in Quinto since 2001.
If Argentina only manage a draw then it could still be enough to ultimately get them there. A single point could move them up to 5th position in the table, which would place them in a Playoff against New Zealand. But for that to happen they would need Peru to lose at home to Columbia.
Today's big game between Argentina and Ecuador has a start time of 7.30 p.m. ET and can be watched by live stream by clicking here.
