GUAYAQUIL (Interstat) — Guayaquil City and Libertad played to a scoreless draw at Estadio Christian Benítez Betancourt in Guayaquil, Ecuador, leaving both sides with identical records in the competition and across all competitions. The home team could not turn its home advantage into a goal, while the visiting side held firm through a series of fouls, yellow cards and second-half substitutions. Neither team found a breakthrough in a match that remained compact and low on clear scoring chances. Both teams are now 2 wins, 1 loss and 1 draw in this competition, and both also sit at 2 wins, 1 loss and 1 draw across all competitions. The result meant the teams shared the points after a match that never produced a goal.

The first half produced little in the way of attacking reward, but it did bring the first two bookings. Libertad’s Rodriguez Perlaza J. G. was cautioned in the 42nd minute. In first-half stoppage time, Quinonez O. also went into the book in the 45+1st minute, giving Libertad two yellow cards before the interval. Guayaquil City tried to increase the tempo after the restart but met a Libertad side that stayed organized and limited space in the final third. The home side’s attempts to play through the middle were repeatedly slowed, and the visitors were willing to defend in numbers. Libertad’s first-half bookings forced the visitors to be more cautious after the break.

The second half followed a similar pattern. Guayaquil City’s Arias R. was shown a yellow card in the 68th minute as the home side’s frustration grew. Libertad’s Pineda Arana X. E. was then booked in the 79th minute, the visitors’ third yellow card of the match. With neither side able to create a decisive moment, the match moved toward a draw that reflected the limited attacking returns from both teams. The closing stages brought more changes than clear chances, and the defenders remained on top.

Both benches were active as the game wore on. Libertad made a double substitution in the 63rd minute, sending on Branda V. and Caicedo E. Guayaquil City followed with a triple change in the 69th minute, bringing on Mancilla P., Gonzalez P. and Dorregaray D. The home side made further adjustments late, with Ayovi Caicedo J. J. entering in the 86th minute and Bolanos M. coming on in the 88th. Libertad also used Cortez Casierra G. J. in the 88th minute and Pineda Arana X. E. in the 90+9th minute. The changes did not produce a goal, and the teams split the points in a match that stayed scoreless. The late flurry of substitutions interrupted the flow but did not alter the outcome.

The result continued an uneven recent run for both clubs. Libertad had previously lost 4-1 at Leones del Norte, beaten Guayaquil City 4-0 at home and defeated Leones del Norte 3-0 at home. Guayaquil City had beaten Emelec 1-0 on the road, lost 4-0 at Libertad and beaten Emelec 3-2 at home. The most recent head-to-head meeting before this game was Libertad’s 4-0 home win over Guayaquil City. Those previous meetings had produced goals in bunches, making the scoreless outcome stand out even more. Yet neither side could replicate that scoring output, and the match ended without a goal.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Guayaquil City 1, Libertad 1. Interstat’s ELO system had projected Guayaquil City with a 70.1 percent probability to win. Guayaquil City had been installed as a pregame favorite with a point spread of -0.5. Those projections did not match the final outcome. The total score of 0 went over the over/under line of 2.5.