The 44th-ranked South Americans beat World Cup hosts Qatar 2-0 before outplaying the Netherlands in a 1-1 draw to go joint top of Group A before Tuesday’s final game of the round.
“I’m convinced we’ve done everything we can, we’ve done our homework, hopefully tomorrow we will be strong and fortunate enough against Senegal, who are a great team, and hopefully we will go through, because we deserve it,” Alfaro added.
Ecuador captain Enner Valencia has scored all three of their goals in Qatar, to add to the three he bagged at their last World Cup in 2014, but has been forced off the pitch with a sprained knee towards the end of each game.
Alfaro was not definitive about his striker’s fitness, but said Valencia would of course be starting if he can.
“He (Enner) has a big heart and he wants to be in every battle for our national team, ‘’he said.
Alfaro said his team should expect their toughest game yet at the tournament against the African champions, who are ranked 26 places above them.
“We respect the picking order, but we don’t need to be fearful. We remain calm but that doesn’t mean we are over-confident, we are not triumphalist,” he said.
Ecuador could still go through if they lose, but that would require a win by Qatar over the Netherlands, which looks improbable based on the hosts’ form.
ALiou Cisse ”Not going to round of 16 would be difficult to digest”
Senegal coach Aliou Cisse said his team are expected to reach the World Cup knockout stages due to their status as African champions but his players are adapting to the pressure well.
Having reached the quarter-finals on their World Cup debut in 2002, Senegal were eliminated in the group stage on fair play points four years ago in Russia.
Senegal need to beat Ecuador in their final Group A game on Tuesday to qualify for the last 16. They could still remain in contention with a draw, provided hosts Qatar beat three-times finalists Netherlands.
“I come from a country where we don’t like losing. not going to the round of 16 would be difficult to digest,” Cisse told reporters on Monday.
“We understand that winning will allow us to continue on the adventure and that’s exactly what we intend on doing,” Cisse added
