10 Greatest Ecuador Players in Football History [Ranked]

Key Takeaways

Ecuador has produced excellent players like Moises Caicedo and Piero Hincapie at top clubs worldwide.
Ulises de la Cruz, Edison Mendez, and Antonio Valencia are among Ecuador’s top players with impressive career stats.
Alberto Spencer is one of Ecuador’s greatest strikers, despite limited international caps.

Though regarded as South American minnows when it comes to major international tournaments, the nation of Ecuador has thrown up some excellent players as the years have gone by. Over at Chelsea, you can find midfield star Moises Caicedo in the centre of their park, purchased from Brighton to the tune of £100m. In the Bundesliga, you can find a talent the size of Piero Hincapie, who was phenomenal in 2023-24 in helping Bayer Leverkusen to a remarkable undefeated title win.

Ecuador’s heritage stretches further still, with some remarkable players having hailed from the country through various generations. With that in mind, here are the 10 greatest Ecuadorian players in football history.

Ranking factors

Accomplishments Statistics Honours Ecuador legacy

10 Ulises de la Cruz
International Career span: 1995-2010

Several Ecuadorian players have honed their craft in the Premier League, and Ulises de la Cruz is one of the finest of the bunch. Having turned heads during a solo season with Hibernian north of the border, the tough-tackling full-back joined Aston Villa in 2002, before enjoying spells with Reading and Birmingham City after four years at Villa Park.

Before his move to England, the attack-minded defender picked up three Ecuadorian Serie A championships with LDU Quito, with whom he once scored a hat-trick during a 7-0 win over Emelec. With the national team itself, only three players from his nation can best his record of 101 caps, with four of them coming in the 2006 World Cup. He also enjoyed winning success with the nation, picking up the Canada Cup in 2009.

Ulises de la Cruz’s Career Stats

Club appearances

527

Ecuador appearances

101

Honours/Trophies

7

9 Piero Hincapie
International Career span: 2021-Present

Though still early in his career, it is fair to give Piero Hincapie his flowers as one of Ecuador’s finest already. The gifted centre-back, who is also comfortable playing on the left of the defence, was imperious as club level for Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen in the 23/24 campaign, helping the club to win an unprecedented invincible Bundesliga title.

The 2002-born defender has already carved out an envious career path for himself, having gone from strength to strength for both club and country, and has already totalled 39 caps for his nation having only debuted for Ecuador in 2021, and was named in the team of the tournament in the 2024 Copa América – the only Ecuadorian to do so – where he guided his country to a quarter-final finish, beaten there only by Argentina, who won the tournament. Give it a few years, and there may be little reason as to why Hincapie cannot breach the top three of this list at the minimum.

Piero Hincapie’s Career Stats

Club appearances

102

Ecuador appearances

39

Honours/Trophies

4

8 Edison Mendez
International Career span: 2000-2014

The mid-2000’s was an era when Edison Mendez flourished as a player, scoring five goals for Ecuador during their qualification to the 2006 World Cup. He grabbed two assists at the tournament to help his side reach the first knockout round in Germany, capturing interest from a host of European sides, before eventually making the switch to Dutch outfit PSV. While there, he won two Eredivisie trophies, as well as becoming the first-ever Ecuadorian Champions League goalscorer. Additionally, his 111 showings for La Tri make him the third-highest-capped Ecuador player of all time.

Edison Mendez’s Career Stats

Club appearances

535

Ecuador appearances

111

Honours/Trophies

5

7 Moises Caicedo
International career span: 2020-Present

Moises Caicedo has outed himself as one of the finest talents to have ever come from Ecuador. Cutting his teeth through the ever-impressive scouting eye of Brighton, alongside compatriot Pervis Estupinan, no less, Caicedo was picked up by free-spending Chelsea last summer for an eye-watering £100m.

Though his time at Stamford Bridge has been a mixed bag thus far, the 2001-born midfield maestro has shone under Enzo Maresca in 2024/25, and has already won 48 caps for his country by the age of 22. The most expensive Ecuadorian of all time made his move to London with no lack of deserving rights and, like Hincapie, may find himself right at the top of this list after the years roll by.

Moises Caicedo’s Career Stats

Club appearances

120

Ecuador appearances

48

Honours/Trophies

2

6 Agustin Delgado
International career span: 1994-2006

Though Southampton fans may not believe it, given his luck-less spell on the English south coast back in 2001, Delgado was a prolific goal-getter for his country, holding the Ecuadorian national team’s all-time strike record until it was broken by Enner Valencia.

After already having scored nine goals for Ecuador while qualifying for the 2002 World Cup, the striker went on to become the first Ecuadorian to score in the tournament proper, finding the net in a clash with Mexico. Sadly, he couldn’t take that form with him to England, where injuries limited him to just a handful of appearances while at Southampton. Delgado had insisted on playing through injuries at said World Cup, gritting his teeth through a cocktail of spirit and painkillers, but upon returning from the tournament was told his injuries were chronically bad, effectively scuppering his fortunes in European football. He did have time for at least one famous moment, though, finding the net for his only Premier League goal with a winner against Arsenal in 2002/03. Delgado is now a politician who stood in the Ecuadorian general election of 2013.

Augustin Delgado’s Career Stats

Ecuador appearances

73

Ecuador goals

31

World Cup goals

3

5 Alex Aguinaga
International career span: 1987-2004

According to reports, Alex Aguinaga once turned down the likes of Real Madrid and Inter to stay loyal to Mexican outfit Necaxa, once upon a time, who eventually retired his famous number seven shirt in his honour in later years

The midfielder spent the majority of his career there, picking up three league titles coupled with four separate cup wins. His record of nearly 100 goals from the centre of the park keeps him instated within the most popular figures in the club’s history, despite having left in 2003. He’s regarded as somewhat of a hero on the international stage, too, having captained Ecuador to their first ever World Cup campaign back in 2002.

Alex Aguinaga’s Career Stats

Club appearances

708

Ecuador appearances

109

Honours/Trophies

9

4 Enner Valencia
International career span: 2012-Present

The man who bested Augustin Delgado at the top of Ecuador’s goal list, re-introducing Enner Valencia. Though his spells in the Premier League with West Ham United and Everton may not have been regarded as some of the greatest of all time, there is little denying Valencia of his place among the nation’s elite, with his national tally of 42 goals seeing him out on his own at the top of La Tri’s scoring charts, 11 clear of Delgado.

After a prolific spell in Mexico with Pachuca, The Hammers brought a £12m offer to the table to take him to the Boleyn Ground, where he scored a 25-yard howitzer on his full league debut against Hull City. His most prolific days came in Turkey with giants Fenerbahce, where he would find the net a mighty 49 times from 90 matches in the Super Lig, winning the 22/23 Golden Boot.

Enner Valencia’s Career Stats

Club appearances

447

Ecuador appearances

91

Honours/Trophies

12

3 Jorge Bolanos
International career span: 1960-1969

Having debuted at the ripe age of 15-years-old for Emelec, Bolanos went on to have a lengthy and successful career in South America. Hoisting the nickname of ‘The Kid’, the attacking midfielder won a haul of honours at a club level, including four Ecuadorian Serie A titles with the aforementioned Emelec and Barcelona SC. He was reportedly courted once by Italian giants AC Milan, but a San Siro switch never came to fruition.

Sadly, during his time as an Ecuador player, his nation was never as big a hitter as they have been later on in their trajectory, meaning he missed out on any chance to represent them at major tournaments. He is regarded as one of the greatest players in yesteryear’s generation throughout South America, regardless, and yet his story remains veritably unknown, meaning very little statistical data exists for Bolanos.

2 Antonio Valencia
International career span: 2004-2019

In European competition, no Ecuador player in history can perhaps match the profile that Antonio Valencia managed to accumulate. Having cut his teeth in a three-year stay at Wigan Athletic, the winger-come-full-back was picked up by Manchester United legend Sir Alex Ferguson in 2009, to the tune of £16m.

After making over 200 appearances, winning the Premier League twice, three Community Shields, two League Cups, an FA Cup and a Europa League, as well as appearing in the 2011 Champions League final, Valencia has truly outed himself as one of the finest Ecuadorian players in history, finishing his career in 2021 with Mexican side Queretaro.

Antonio Valencia’s Career Stats

Club appearances

467

Ecuador appearances

99

Honours/Trophies

19

1 Alberto Spencer
International career span: 1959-1963

Though many make the claims for the likes of George Best to be the greatest player to have never appeared at a World Cup, Ecuador fans will likely brand Alberto Spencer right up alongside them in that respective category.

He was famed for his clinical edge inside the area, and Spencer was at his best in Uruguay for Penarol, scoring a mighty 326 goals during his near 10-year spell with them, as well as becoming the highest goalscorer in Copa Libertadores history – a record that still stands today – and winning eight Primera Division titles.

He is held in such high South American prestige and esteem, that as such he was voted in 20th place in the list of all-time South American player – making him the highest-ranked Ecuadorian on a list topped, of course, by Pele. Similarly to Bolanos, Spencer’s esteemed heritage came at a time where Ecuador found little success on the international stage, meaning Spencer never got the chance to take part in a major tournament with his nation, and was limited to just 11 national caps. Perhaps the greatest striker that few in the modern era have heard of.

Alberto Spencer career stats

Club appearances

662

Ecuador appearances

11

Honours/Trophies

24

All statistics courtesy of Transfermarkt. Correct as of 23.09.24

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Publish date : 2024-09-28 09:29:00

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