Ecuador loses 3-0 to South Korea in Gallardo debut

How South Korea pulled away

Oh Hyeon-gyu opened the scoring 10 minutes into the second half, TYC Sports reported. Son Heung-min added a free-kick goal soon after, and Lee Dong-gyeong completed South Korea's scoring late in the match.

The first half ended scoreless. Neither team created major chances, and Ecuador struggled to turn its pressure into shots. South Korea then took control after the break. Lee's goal followed a passing move that left Ecuador's defense exposed.

Gallardo's first Ecuador lineup used a 4-2-3-1 and included five changes from the team that started Ecuador's 2026 World Cup loss to Mexico. Hernán Galíndez played in goal, with Ángelo Preciado, Jackson Porozo, Willian Pacho and Pervis Estupiñán in defense. Alan Franco and Pedro Vite started in midfield, while John Yeboah, Keny Arroyo, Nilson Angulo and Jordy Caicedo formed the attacking group.

The players Ecuador was missing

Ecuador did not have Joel Ordóñez, Piero Hincapié, Moisés Caicedo or Gonzalo Plata. They were injured or had only recently recovered from physical problems that kept them out of the call-up. Enner Valencia had already announced his retirement from the national team before joining Boca Juniors.

South Korea also began a new coaching cycle under Roberto Moreno. Son wore the captain's armband and scored the second goal. The result gave South Korea its first win over Ecuador in the teams' latest meeting, after South Korea won their 2010 match 2-0.

Ecuador's next match

Ecuador will play Japan on Oct. 1 in its next match of the Asian tour. The team is scheduled to face either New Zealand or Panama on Oct. 5. Those matches will give Gallardo two more games to assess a squad that produced no goals in his first outing.

The loss also continued Ecuador's recent pattern of losing its first match under a new coach. Félix Sánchez Bas began with a 3-1 defeat by Australia in 2023, while Sebastián Beccacece opened with a 1-0 loss to Brazil in 2024.