Comments and predictions for Chile vs Ecuador: Deadlocked match

Latest Chile vs Ecuador team information

Chile will be hoping to have national legend Alexis Sanchez back in the upcoming match, after he was not even named on the bench in last week's defeat to Paraguay.

However, Sanchez is not the only Chilean player with fitness issues. Fabian Hormazabal withdrew at the last minute, Marcelo Morales is still injured, and Norwich City's Marcelino Nunez was left out of the squad due to a lack of fitness in recent weeks.

In midfield, Erick Pulgar and Williams Alarcon are also absent, but coach Ricardo Gareca can still count on the experience of Arturo Vidal, who made his 145th appearance for the national team in last week's match.

Ecuador have also been hit by the loss of wingers Angelo Preciado and Jhoanner Chavez to this training camp. However, Brighton & Hove Albion's Pervis Estupinan is in good form for his club and will be a starter in the upcoming match.

Another England-based player, former Brighton man Jeremy Sarmiento, has been left out due to a lack of regular playing time at Burnley, while Alan Minda and Leonardo Campana are also absent due to personal or injury reasons.

Veteran striker Enner Valencia is now just four appearances away from 100 caps, while Chelsea's Moises Caicedo – despite being just 23 – is more than halfway there, and both are likely to continue to add to their international tally.

Latest expected lineup for Chile vs Ecuador

Chile:
Cortes; Loyola, Maripan, Diaz, Suazo; Vidal, Echeverria, Pizarro; Sanchez, Vargas, Cepeda

Ecuador:
Galindez; Ordonez, Torres, Pacho, Estupinan; Plata, Vite, Caicedo, Franco, Mercado; Valencia

Latest football commentary Chile vs Ecuador

Chile go into this month's qualifiers hoping they have found their form, building on a positive boost towards the end of 2024 – a period that saw them climb out of the bottom of the group.

However, coach Ricardo Gareca's team lost 0-1 on Paraguay's field, in a match where they wasted many opportunities in the first half and played disappointingly after the break.

Peru's win over Bolivia at home saw them leapfrog Chile in the standings, and a home defeat to Bolivia in September could prove to be one of the most disastrous turning points for La Roja.

Chile are currently just four points off a play-off spot, but with four teams vying for that spot and just five games remaining, dropping points – home or away – could prove costly.

Gareca can take some comfort from the fact that Venezuela have just lost another game, and are still within reach – the same team they beat 4-2 in November. However, that will be for naught if Chile do not take all three points at home this time.

Chile lost 0-1 to Ecuador in the first leg in November 2023, and they were also defeated at home by Ecuador in the previous World Cup qualifiers. Given their current form, this is clearly a huge test for the home team.

Despite being docked three points at the start of their qualifying campaign, Ecuador are now very close to reaching the finals, with just five games remaining but they have become the closest team to Argentina – who are convincingly leading the group.

After qualifying for the last World Cup, Ecuador are aiming for a second consecutive World Cup – something they have only done once in their history. With 22 points, they are all but guaranteed a place in North America.

Beccacece's side are on a six-game unbeaten run, picking up 14 points in that time. They have only conceded one goal in that run, and that was an injury-time winner against Venezuela last week.

It's no surprise that Ecuador have the best defense in the qualifiers, having conceded just five goals in 13 games. However, their final run of games won't be easy.

All their remaining away games are tough, including against the bottom two – including Chile next – and at home they face both Brazil and Argentina.

Latest score prediction for Chile vs Ecuador

Based on the above football comments, we and the world's leading football sites have given the results of the match.Chile vs Ecuadoras follows:

• Sportsmole:Chile 1-0 Ecuador

• WhoScore:Chile 0-0 Ecuador
• Our newspaper predicts:Chile 0-0 Ecuador

When and where to watch Chile vs Ecuador live?

To watch live the match Chile vs Ecuador in the World Cup qualifiers taking place at 7:00 a.m. on March 26, viewers can watch onK+ Sport,K+PMor online sports channels. Wish you have fun watching football.