Challenge

This is Anfield
Spectators: 44 (Terracing: 34, Seating: 10, VIP seats: 0) Dark clouds were building up when the players entered the field. None of the them looked very eager to play. Daniel Zorita started the match with the kick off. After having played for 5 minutes, Luis Andino managed to get in a good position for a shot on goal. Ecuador's supporters crossed their fingers, but Luis Andino was, after a quick turn that froze the defenders, out of balance and shot the ball just to the right of the goal. Julio Vera made an important save on a dangerous shot by Ramiro Paul in the 6th minute. Dino Zoff made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Luis Andino in the 8th minute of play. After taking down the ball on Ecuador's corner Daniel Zorita fired away a hard shot, but the defenders efficiently covered the most dangerous angles and Dino Zoff quite easily take care of the ball. After a rather tough play, Cormoranii -MM-'s Apolo Foro got a free kick in the 10th minute. Luis Andino might have been able to make a better finish in the 16th minute when he tried to place a hard shot over Dino Zoff. Instead the ball went over the crossbar and out. Luis Andino ran back to his position shaking his head. Dino Zoff took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Luis Andino, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. In the 17th match minute, Cormoranii -MM- was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Marcel Vulpe to maneuver through the defense. If Felix Montenegro had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 23rd minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. Julio Vera was out of position in the 32 minute of play, and Ramiro Paul capitalized on the mistake with a soft shot into the goal. Ramiro Paul really showed his touch with that goal: 1-0. An unexpectedly hard shot by Daniel Zorita in the 39th minute of play forced Cormoranii -MM-'s goalkeeper Dino Zoff to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. Julio Vera made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Ramiro Paul in the 40th minute of play. The supporters of Ecuador booed when Cormoranii -MM- was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 43 match minutes in a wonderful position. Eugen Boldur didn't get a good kick on the ball. 44 minutes into the match, Cristian Sancho had an open shot that he just couldn't miss and scored to the right of Dino Zoff. Cormoranii -MM-'s manager could be seen yelling to the referee that Cristian Sancho was offside, but the referee ignored the protest. 1-1. The supporters of Cormoranii -MM- booed when Ecuador was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 47 match minutes in a wonderful position. Juan Sebastián Puig didn't get a good kick on the ball. The first half was very even, with the score at 1-1 when the whistle went for half-time. The players welcomed the break and quickly retired to the dressing rooms.

The players of the home team were most fresh-looking when they entered the field to play the second half. Ramiro Paul was the one to do the kick off. Daniel Zorita's shot when he came free in front of the goal in the 51stth minute, Dino Zoff skillfully showed off with a save to what seemed to be an obvious goal. Cormoranii -MM-'s Dino Zoff played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Cristian Sancho in the 55th minute of play. The audience was convinced that Ramiro Paul's extremely hard shot when he got free in front of the goal was going in, but Julio Vera was relentless in the 62nd minute of the game. In the 63rd match minute, Cormoranii -MM- was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Costel Diaconu to maneuver through the defense. The audience thought a goal was coming when Cristian Sancho got free with Dino Zoff in the 65th minute, but the goalkeeper managed to catch the ball with a huge effort. Costel Diaconu charged in rather forcefully in the 65th minute of the match, and managed to knock his opponent down. The referee showed Costel Diaconu the yellow card, and asked the players to shake hands before continuing play. In the 66th match minute, Cormoranii -MM- was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Costel Diaconu to maneuver through the defense. The crowd rose to their feet as Felix Montenegro kicked a wonderful shot that went in to the left of a diving Dino Zoff. That made the score 1-3 in the 67 minute of play. 69 minutes into the match, Ecuador's goal looked a bit too open when Ramiro Paul came free, but Julio Vera reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. In the 70th minute, Costel Diaconu ran past the defenders and hit a shot which went straight ahead into goal. Julio Vera was frozen by the shot and now it was 2-3. Luis Andino scored 2-4 in the 76th match minute with a shot that went into the goal to the right of Dino Zoff, who was just a little too slow in reacting to the shot. Julio Vera stood for a superb save when he managed to get hold of Ramiro Paul's shot from short distance in the 80th minute. After a rather tough play, Ecuador's Juan Sebastián Puig got a free kick in the 83rd minute. In the 90th minute, Ramiro Paul got an opportunity to score, but he didn't get a solid hit on the ball and ended up kicking it wide of the goal. With a couple of smart ball manuevers Ramiro Paul in the 92nd managed to get into a good position. With a left leg Julio Vera saved Ecuador from getting behind. Cristian Sancho hit a great freekick 92 minutes into the match. After 96 played minutes Cormoranii -MM- got a freekick which was hit by Apolo Foro. Ecuador's players went to the stands to thank the travelling support. The fan's backing had helped spurr the team on to a fine performance that won them the match.