Challenge

DRV PNK Stadium
Spectators: 40 (Terracing: 31, Seating: 9, VIP seats: 0) In the 3rd minute Cristian Sancho shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Alejo Botello saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. 6 minutes into the match, Inter Miami CF's goal looked a bit too open when Cristian Sancho came free, but Alejo Botello reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. In the 8th minute Agustín Saelices shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Alejo Botello saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. The audience was convinced that Daniel Zorita's extremely hard shot when he got free in front of the goal was going in, but Alejo Botello was relentless in the 13th minute of the game. When the match had gone on for 26 minutes, Cristian Sancho put it in 0-2 from a short distance just to the right of Alejo Botello. Daniel Zorita recieved an excellent pass in front of the goal in the 28th minute. Unfortunately, he received the ball on his off foot and could only manage a weak shot that went over the goal. Inter Miami CF's Alejo Botello played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Cristian Sancho in the 33rd minute of play. When Cristian Sancho came up free with the goalie in the 36th minute, the Ecuador fans jumped to their feet. But the shot missed the goal by a fraction of an inch, and the fans sat back down disappointed that Cristian Sancho couldn't finish the play. If Daniel Zorita had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 39th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. Rigoberto Paul fired away a screaming shot towards the goal in the 42nd minute, but the shot went just over the crossbar without Julio Vera having to interfere. Alejo Botello showed brilliant goalkeeper skills when he caught the ball after a hard shot from Cristian Sancho in the 43rd minute of the match. The crowd was extremely unhappy with the home team's performance in the first half. They were losing 0-2.

Both teams looked relatively alert before the second half when the referee blew his whistle to tell Daniel Zorita to make the kick off. The audience thought a goal was coming when Felix Montenegro got free with Alejo Botello in the 62nd minute, but the goalkeeper managed to catch the ball with a huge effort. Daniel Zorita might have been able to make a better finish in the 70th minute when he tried to place a hard shot over Alejo Botello. Instead the ball went over the crossbar and out. Daniel Zorita ran back to his position shaking his head. Inter Miami CF's Alejo Botello proved his good apprehension of play when he, in the 73rd minute of the match, managed to save Inter Miami CF from getting a goal against them. Cristian Sancho fired away a screaming shot towards the goal in the 74th minute, but the shot went just over the crossbar without Alejo Botello having to interfere. In the 75th match minute, Inter Miami CF was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Flaco Schiavi to maneuver through the defense. Inter Miami CF's Alejo Botello proved his good apprehension of play when he, in the 77th minute of the match, managed to save Inter Miami CF from getting a goal against them. Alejo Botello made a fantastic save in the 79th minute, when Daniel Zorita sent off a good shot on target. Rigoberto Paul charged in rather forcefully in the 79th minute of the match, and managed to knock his opponent down. The referee showed Rigoberto Paul the yellow card, and asked the players to shake hands before continuing play. Rigoberto Paul kicked well hit freekick during the 79th minute of the match. In the 81st minute, Daniel Zorita made a precise shot to the right of Alejo Botello. Inter Miami CF's defense was at fault, and the scoreboard reflected the new score, 0-4. 87 minutes into the match, Inter Miami CF's goalkeeper Alejo Botello had to clear away a ball on his right side after a cunning shot by Agustín Saelices. An unexpectedly hard shot by Cristian Sancho in the 88th minute of play forced Inter Miami CF's goalkeeper Alejo Botello to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. Ecuador's Daniel Zorita got a good chance for a goal in the 90th minute, but he totally mistimed the shot and it went over the crossbar. 95 minutes into the match, Arnoldo Veronica had an open shot that he just couldn't miss and scored to the right of Julio Vera. Ecuador's manager could be seen yelling to the referee that Arnoldo Veronica was offside, but the referee ignored the protest. 1-4. 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.