Switzerland used a dramatic stoppage time goal by Haris Seferovic to defeat Ecuador in its World Cup opening match.
The Swiss controlled the ball early, easily countering Ecuador's scattered defensive efforts to put a bevy of shots on goal in the early going. But it was Ecuador that struck first, with a header by Enner Valencia off of a perfectly placed free-kick crossing pass.
Ecuador's explosive play off the wings gave the Swiss defenders fits and led to a barrage of dangerous counter-attacks through most of the match.
Nonetheless, the Swiss continued to draw fouls and earn corner kicks. In the 47th minute, they turned a corner kick into a goal from Admir Mehmedi, who found himself unchecked in front of the net with Ecuadorian goalkeeper Maximo Banguera trailing on the far side.
After that, the game became frantic, with both defenses broken by a series of creative, but ultimately fruitless offensive attacks.
In stoppage time, Ecuador seemed to have a chance for a deciding goal, but turned the ball over in front of the Swiss net. The Swiss countered without hesitation, finding nothing but open field and out-of-position defenders. With 20 seconds to play, Seferovic scored the game-winner.
Enner Valencia with a fabulous header off the set piece cross, right in the back of the net. Ecuador quickly gathering fire on the offensive end.
The equalizer in the second half didn’t take long. A perfect corner kick into the header!
Ecuador marking on Switzerland’s goal was just as Switzerland marking on Ecuador’s. Free header from inside the six.
— Andrew Das (@AndrewDasNYT) June 15, 2014
A last second stunner in stoppage time!
Stu Forster/Getty Images
Ecuador was deflated by the failure of a promising Montero-led drive to the net, but the Swiss at-large sprinted the other way, sensing one last chance to score. One final defensive breakdown for the Ecuadorians led to their demise, as the Football Gods speak loudly here. Seferovic found himself all alone in front of the Ecuadorian keeper and put it in to complete the most exciting game of the tournament thus far.
The Swiss fans in attendance are as jubilant as the Ecuadorian fans are shell-shocked. Just a few seconds removed from seeing three points disappear from their ledger on an offensive breakdown, they watch the Swiss take the match, the points, and supremacy in Group E. And now the Ecuadorians have major work in front of them, if they wish to escape to the round of 16.