Franklin Salas faces off with Sebastián Beccacece over Ecuador national team call-ups

As players of the Ecuador national team begin to arrive in Quito for the training camp ahead of crucial matches against Venezuela and Chile in the South American World Cup qualifiers, Franklin Salas, former player and multiple champion with Liga de Quito, did not hesitate to express his surprise and discontent with the squad list presented by Argentine coach Sebastián Beccacece.

The "Wizard" Salas, who donned La Tri's jersey in 27 matches, was incredulous at the absence of key Liga de Quito players, despite the team recently achieving a back-to-back championship. Particularly, the absence of Michael Estrada, who could have been an option to cover for Leonardo Campana's absence in attack, provoked a strong reaction from Salas in statements collected by the newspaper Olé.

"It's suspicious... That's the word. Knowing that there's no one from Liga de Quito, with players who have more than earned their place in the national team, players who became champions twice, players with experience, who've played in a World Cup...", expressed the former player. Despite Beccacece having his reasons, Salas did not hide his concern, pointing out that "when the national team starts losing, all the problems will come."

Regarding the absent players, it's not just Liga de Quito players. Names like Jeremy Sarmiento also stand out, who, despite being a constant in previous call-ups, was left out due to his diminished role at Burnley. Additionally, Miguel Parrales, one of the top scorers frequently mentioned by fans, remains out of the national team despite his good performance.

The players called up by Beccacece for the double-header qualifiers are:

Goalkeepers: Hernán Galíndez, Moisés Ramírez, David Cabezas
Defenders: Pervis Estupiñán, Joel Ordóñez, Félix Torres, Xavier Arreaga, Piero Hincapié, Willian Pacho, Cristian Ramírez
Midfielders: Moisés Caicedo, Jhegson Méndez, Yaimar Medina, Denil Castillo, Alan Franco, Keny Arroyo, Gonzalo Plata, Janner Corozo, Jhon Yeboah, Kendry Páez, Pedro Vite
Forwards: Enner Valencia, Jhon Mercado, Kevin Rodríguez