Ecuador hold Brazil to reach Copa America last eight

Goiania: Ecuador advanced to the Copa America quarterfinals after Angel Mena’s second-half strike earned them a 1-1 draw with Brazil.

The tournament hosts began the match on Sunday with Neymar and several other regular first-team players on the bench as head coach Tite continued his rotation policy, reports Xinhua.

Eder Militao put the defending champions ahead just before halftime, nodding the ball into the top right corner after connecting with Everton Soares’s set piece.

Angel Mena, who replaced the injured Moises Caicedo in the first half, equalised just after the interval, thumping a close-range shot past goalkeeper Alisson after Enner Valencia’s looping header.

The result ended a run of 10 consecutive wins for Brazil, who still entered the knockout stage having topped Group B with 10 points from four games.

Ecuador, who finished the competition’s first phase with three points, secured a berth in the last eight despite failing to register a victory.

In another Copa America match on Sunday, Andre Carrillo scored just after halftime to hand Peru a 1-0 win over eliminated Venezuela.

Peru clinched the second place in Group B with seven points while Venezuela finished fifth with two points.