Brazil vs. Ecuador: Winners and Losers from International Friendly

Willian scored from a clever set piece as Brazil edged Ecuador 1-0 at East Rutherford, New Jersey’s MetLife Stadium on Tuesday.

In a play that came right off the training ground, Oscar found Neymar with a short delivery, and the Barcelona man’s delicate lay-off to Willian allowed the Chelsea attacker to slot the ball just inside the far post.

Brazil enjoyed the majority of possession against its South American rival, although Ecuador had numerous chances to score—most notably in the second half when Filipe Luis cleared Enner Valencia’s header off the line.

Following are some of the winners and losers from the encounter.

Winner: Luiz Gustavo, Who Was Brazil's Best Player on the Night

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Much of what he does is unheralded, but there’s no disputing Luiz Gustavo’s importance to Brazil.

Once again on Tuesday the Wolfsburg midfielder kept things tidy in front of Brazil’s central defense while making short, useful passes to his more attacking teammates.

In the 42nd minute he made his most important contribution to the match when he cleanly tackled Juan Cazares on the edge of the Brazil box.

The referee judged that he had fouled his opponent, but replays showed the challenge was hard and accurate.

Loser: Enner Valencia, Who Couldn’t Buy a Goal

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Enner Valencia had several chances to score on Tuesday, but it always seemed as though either the woodwork or a Brazil player was in his way.

Midway through the first half the newly acquired West Ham striker rang a shot off the crossbar from distance, and after the restart his downward header from a Juan Paredes cross was cleared off the line by Filipe Luis.

The latter was the only shot he managed on target over the 90 minutes.

Winner: Juan Paredes, Who Excelled on Both Sides of the Ball

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Ecuador’s best player on Tuesday was Juan Paredes, who both created numerous goalscoring opportunities going forward and helped smother the Brazil attack on the defensive side of the ball.

Time and again the right-back ran himself into meaningful space for a cross, and while his deliveries were typically well-placed it seemed as though his teammates didn’t know what to do with them.

Defensively, the 27-year-old put in a physical shift against Neymar, whom he helped prevent from finding the back of the net.

Winner: Everton Ribeiro, Who Might Have Played Himself into the 1st Team

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Everton Ribeiro played only the second half on Tuesday, but in his 45 minutes of action he was typically Brazil’s most creative player.

Midway through the second half his cheeky, chipped effort required a tremendous save from Ecuador goalkeeper Alexander Dominguez, and the Cruzeiro playmaker also seemed to line up nicely with both Neymar and club teammate Ricardo Goulart.

The 25-year-old may have done enough at MetLife Stadium to play himself into Brazil manager Dunga’s first-team plans going forward.

Loser: Neymar, Who Was Nicely Dealt with by Ecuador

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Neymar played an important part in the only goal of the match, but overall his influence was considerably more limited than he would have liked.

He struggled opposite Juan Paredes, for example, and through much of the second half he looked a picture of frustration.

In the 46th minute he should have found the back of the net, but despite being just two paces out he managed to one-touch the ball onto the crossbar with the goal gaping.

Winner: Frickson Erazo, Who Helped Limit the Damage While Brazil Was in Control

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Brazil made a quick start to Tuesday’s match, and but for the efforts of Ecuador’s Frickson Erazo it might have been two or three goals up at the break.

Early in the first half the Flamengo defender cut out Ramires’ cross after the Chelsea midfielder had exchanged passes with Danilo, and a few minutes later he threw himself in front of Neymar’s shot after the Barcelona maestro had cut inside.

Overall, Erazo and 19-year-old Luis Canga formed a useful partnership in the center of the Ecuador defense that conceded just four shots on target.