Uraguay vs Ecuador

Uruguay, under by Marcelo Bielsa, will visit Ecuador in Montevideo on Tuesday in an attempt to put the off-field turmoil and their humiliating loss from last week behind them.

Many countries have closed the gap on Uruguay in CONMEBOL World Cup qualification after a surprising loss in Peru on Friday. Meanwhile, Ecuador maintained their strong campaign with another victory on matchday nine.

Uruguay appeared to be headed for a fifth consecutive World Cup after a strong start to qualifying at the end of 2023, which saw them defeat Argentina and Brazil.

However, their performance since losing to Colombia in the Copa America semi-finals during the summer has been a little worrisome. A number of important players have been suspended as a result of the altercation that followed the loss.

La Celeste's defense was pierced for the first time in nearly ten hours of qualifying action on Friday, resulting in Bielsa's team losing in Peru and giving the Blanquirroja their first victory in the section.

Uruguay has yet to score since their Copa exit, and although maintaining their comfortable third-place standing, they now have just four points separating them from a playoff spot after two 0-0 ties in September's games.

Uruguay lost their sixth straight game in 90 minutes in Lima, and it's possible that the off-field drama that erupted after Luis Suarez accused Bielsa of fostering a hostile environment in the Uruguayan camp didn't help.

Although Uruguay has never lost an international match against Ecuador at home and has only lost three points when playing in qualification, the visitors have recently shown themselves to be uncooperative.

Last week's 0-0 draw with Paraguay saw Sebastian Beccacece's team maintain another clean sheet, their fifth in six qualifiers, as they continue to accumulate points steadily.

Ecuador, one of the largest overachievers to date, has not allowed a three-point deduction to control their campaign because, in the absence of it, they would be ahead of Brazil and tied with their next opponents.

The only teams to defeat La Tri so far in the campaign are Argentina and Brazil, but in this incredibly close stretch, Ecuador is still in danger from those in their rear.

With just three points separating fourth from ninth in CONMEBOL at the halfway point, Venezuela and Paraguay remained tight on matchday nine, while Bolivia's victory helped them cut the gap.

However, Ecuador has experience navigating South American qualifying, having advanced to four of the previous six World Cups, including the most recent one in Qatar. With two more spaces now up for grabs, they should still be among the most-fancied teams to make it to the 2026 championships.