Challenge

Folke Anderson
Spectators: 44 (Terracing: 34, Seating: 10, VIP seats: 0) It was fairly windy and cold on the field when İbrahim Volkan kicked off to start the match. 3 minutes into the match, Mexico's goalkeeper Dante Lacasa had to clear away a ball on his right side after a cunning shot by Damian Maftei. In the 5th minute, Alberto Tafalla made a precise shot to the right of Aguinaga Nebot. Esmeraldas S.C.'s defense was at fault, and the scoreboard reflected the new score, 0-1. In the 8th minute, Stefanos Terzopoulos ran past the defenders and hit a shot which went straight ahead into goal. Dante Lacasa was frozen by the shot and now it was 1-1. Joel Gaona took the ball and in the 18 minute, shot a rapid shot to the right of a surprised Aguinaga Nebot. Aguinaga Nebot dived to the right, and did manage to get a hand on the shot, but it still went into the right corner making it 1-2. Joel Gaona sent away a hard shot on goal in the 20th minute, but the ball went just over the crossbar and out. A very good chance. 25 minutes had been played when some careless play by Esmeraldas S.C.'s defense caused the ball to cross the line for a corner. Joel Gaona was slow to take the kick. During this time Mexico's players had a chance to rest. Stefanos Terzopoulos made a great header on Esmeraldas S.C.'s corner, it was just that Mexico's Dante Lacasa managed to reach the ball for a save. Felix Luque charged in rather forcefully in the 34th minute of the match, and managed to knock his opponent down. The referee showed Felix Luque the yellow card, and asked the players to shake hands before continuing play. After 34 played minutes Mexico got a freekick which was hit by Felix Luque. In the 36th minute İbrahim Volkan shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Dante Lacasa saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. Dante Lacasa didn't succeed in stopping the ball in the 37th minute, which inside left pole to 2-2. Thanks to some nice moves Damian Maftei could shoot a difficult shot in the 42nd minute, which Dante Lacasa however easily saved by the left post. Dante Lacasa was in the perfect position, and the defense had done a good job marking him, but Damian Maftei showcased his skills and made a perfect shot to score 3-2 in the 43 minute of play. Mexico's Dante Lacasa played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by İbrahim Volkan in the 46th minute of play. Stefanos Terzopoulos could have scored with his fast shot on goal in the 48th minute of the match, but Dante Lacasa made a huge save.

When the second half was about to start, both teams quickly lined up and Joel Gaona made a kick off. Esmeraldas S.C.'s Aguinaga Nebot played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Joel Gaona in the 54th minute of play. The supporters of Esmeraldas S.C. booed when Mexico was adjudged a doubtful freekick after 58 match minutes in a wonderful position. Felix Luque didn't get a good kick on the ball. Damian Maftei blasted a shot towards the goal in the 59th minute, but the shot hit the top of the crossbar and went out without Dante Lacasa having to make a save. In the 61st match minute, Mexico was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Facundo Cadaval to maneuver through the defense. A collision led to Mexico getting a freekick after 62 minutes play. Facundo Cadaval hit a great ball. Damian Maftei's shot was meant for the net just under the crossbar, but Dante Lacasa read the situation well and was quickly in position to make a wonderful save in the 64th minute of play. Dante Lacasa stood for a superb save when he managed to get hold of Damian Maftei's shot from short distance in the 69th minute. Esmeraldas S.C. were awarded a corner in the 70th minute after Mexico's defender lost control of the ball, allowing it to roll out over the line. Stefanos Terzopoulos took the corner. Dante Lacasa showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from İbrahim Volkan in the 72nd minute of the match. Stefanos Terzopoulos scored 4-2 in the 76th match minute with a shot that went into the goal to the right of Dante Lacasa, who was just a little too slow in reacting to the shot. Aguinaga Nebot took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Joel Gaona, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. 82 minutes into the match, Esmeraldas S.C.'s goalkeeper Aguinaga Nebot had to clear away a ball on his right side after a cunning shot by Alberto Tafalla. 91 minutes in the game, Joel Gaona fired away an excellent shot, which passed to the side of the right post without Aguinaga Nebot having to interfere. 94 minutes into the match, İbrahim Volkan notched a goal, 5-2, to the right of Mexico's Dante Lacasa. Dante Lacasa was clearly disgusted with the effort of the defense and let the defenders know about it. For all the effort they put into the match, the Mexico players left disappointed. They had fought hard, but couldn't break down the home team's defense. The match ended in a win for Esmeraldas S.C..