In the World Cup opener in Qatar, Ecuador, the king of the South American highlands, beat host Qatar 2-0 to open the game. In the match, Enna Valencia managed Ecuador's two goals, first scoring the first World Cup goal from a penalty and then scoring twice with a header.
After Valencia's goal, Ecuador's entire team celebrated in the same way – all the players gathered in a circle and pointed their fingers at the sky. This action aroused the concern and curiosity of fans, and some British media initially believed that the celebration was related to the religious beliefs of Ecuadorian players, but later a reporter revealed more heartwarming reasons.
Journalist Siavoush Fallahi revealed on social media: "Christian Benitez tragically died in Qatar in 2013 due to cardiac arrest. With the Qatari national team, his central forward position was inherited by Enna Valencia, who scored three goals at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Now, Valencia have scored twice in the World Cup opener in Qatar. Fate is crazy sometimes. ”
Born on 1 May 1986, Christian Benitez spent a short spell on loan at Premier League club Birmingham City in the 2009–10 season after many years in the Ecuadorian league. He joined Qatari club El-Jaish in 2013, however, on 29 July 2013, the day after Benitez made his new club's debut, he died of cardiac arrest at the age of 27.
Benitez's record for the Ecuadorian national team is forever stuck at 25 goals in 61 games. After Benitez's death, Enna Valencia, who is three years younger than Benitez, was selected for the national team again after a year and a half. At the 2014 World Cup in Brazil and the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, Valencia scored a total of 5 goals. In the list of all-time goalscorers of the Ecuadorian national team, Valencia are first with 37 goals and Benitez is fourth with 25 goals.