Ecuador 0-0 Curaçao — World Cup: Recap, Highlights & Reactions

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A tiny island of 156,000 people just shut down a South American powerhouse to keep their World Cup alive.

Curaçao bounced back from a seven-goal humiliation to secure their first-ever World Cup point with a scoreless draw against Ecuador.

Just one week after a brutal 7-1 loss to Germany, 's side executed a perfect defensive plan. Ecuador's aggressive couldn't break down , who dropped deep to protect goalkeeper . In midfield, tried to direct transitions, but worked tirelessly to disrupt the service. Ecuador's clinical finishing struggles flared up again, leaving them frustrated and scoreless. For Curaçao, the smallest nation to ever play in a World Cup, this ugly 0-0 draw is a beautiful, historic triumph.

— and get this

Despite their relative geographic proximity in the Americas, this 0-0 draw was the first-ever match between Ecuador and Curaçao.

Curaçao is the smallest nation by both population and land area to ever qualify for a World Cup, breaking the previous record held by Iceland.

Curaçao manager , at 78 years old, is officially the oldest head coach in World Cup history.