Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Ecuador win with a probability of 44.92%. A draw had a probability of 27.7% and a win for Qatar had a probability of 27.41%.
The most likely scoreline for a Ecuador win was 0-1 with a probability of 13.18%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 0-2 (8.81%) and 1-2 (8.64%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (12.91%), while for a Qatar win it was 1-0 (9.66%). The actual scoreline of 0-2 was predicted with an 8.8% likelihood. Our team at Sports Mole and our data analysis both correctly predicted that Ecuador would win this match.