By MATT PIKE
A crowd at Arrowhead Stadium history as Curaçao goalkeeper Eloy Room made 15 saves to equal the men's World Cup record helping earn the tiny Caribbean nation its first-ever World Cup point with a 0-0 draw against Ecuador.
After allowing seven goals to Germany in the opening match of group play, the 37-year-old Room bounced back in spectacular fashion producing one of the finest performances by a goalkeeper in tournament history. His save total is tied for the most in a World Cup game, since saves became an official stat in 1966 according to ESPN Research, matching the mark set by Team USA goalkeeper Tim Howard against Belgium in 2014.
Room, a former MLS Cup winner with the Columbus Crew, plays for Miami FC in the U.S. second-tier USL Championship. While he tied the overall record, his save tally is the most in a World Cup game by a keeper who kept a shutout, also standing alone as the most in a World Cup game that did not go to extra time. Howard's record in the match against Belgium went into extra time, and finished with the United States being eliminated in a 2-1 loss. Room will not get the overall record officially, with FIFA marking Howard's tally at 16 saves, while others record one of those saves as being from an off-target shot.
Among the crowd witnessing history at Kansas City Stadium, as it's known during the FIFA World Cup, there were some distinguished names watching the history making performance. King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands were in attendance after watching the Dutch team rout Sweden earlier in the day. Joining them in the pro-Ecuador crowd at the home of the Kansas City Chiefs were Kansas City Royals players Bobby Witt Jr., Salvador Perez and Starling Marte, on an off day from their series with the St. Louis Cardinals with the World Cup action happening next door.
Ecuador attempted 28 shots with 15 of them on target, the most in a men's World Cup match without scoring since at least 1966. Room set the tone early, making a huge stop on an Enner Valencia breakaway in the third minute, then he stopped Valencia on another golden opportunity in the 20th minute. Ecuador began to ramp up the degree of difficulty in the second half, forcing short-range stops of Gonzalo Plata in the 59th minute, Valencia again in the 65th and substitute Kevin Rodríguez in the 66th.
Ecuador's last shot on target came in the 80th minute, which meant that Room didn't have a chance to set the record. But he likely considered that an acceptable trade for securing Curaçao's first World Cup point.
Kansas City will see one more match during the pool play stage of the FIFA World Cup, before the knockout stages begin, when Tunisia faces the Netherlands on Thursday at 6pm. The game will air on Fox. Following that match, Arrowhead Stadium will host the Group K winner against a third place winner from either Groups D, E, I, J, or L on July 3rd.
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