Stalemate at the Bottom: Cumbayá and Chacaritas Share Points in Goalless Draw as Liga Pro Serie B Relegation Battle Tightens

On a humid Sunday evening in Ecuador, the shrill final whistle at a nondescript venue brought a match long on urgency but short on quality to a close—Cumbayá and Chacaritas, both mired in the lower rungs of Liga Pro Serie B, played to a 0-0 draw that neither side could truly celebrate nor afford to dismiss. For two teams desperately seeking momentum with the season winding down, the result felt more like a pause than a turning point.

The match’s opening act hinted at the stakes. Cumbayá, clinging to 10th place and out to secure a second consecutive victory after a gritty 1-0 away win against Atlético Vinotinto just weeks prior, pressed forward with intent. Chacaritas, meanwhile, entered the contest struggling for identity and consistency—their lone win in the last five outings a distant memory, though a resounding one: a 4-1 rout of these same Cumbayá back on September 2.

Yet, for all the early energy, clear chances remained elusive. The hosts—solid defensively but lacking fluency in attack—found their best avenue through the tireless running of their midfield engine. Occasional flashes of enterprise on the flanks rarely translated into danger for the Chacaritas goalkeeper, who spent much of the first half orchestrating his back line rather than leaping into action.

It was Chacaritas who fashioned the match’s first genuine opportunity. In the 27th minute, a scrap in the box saw the ball fall kindly to their striker, whose snap shot was parried sharply away by Cumbayá’s alert keeper. That save—routine but vital—set the tone for a contest where the goalkeepers were rarely stretched but always vigilant.

As the match wore on, tension supplanted creativity. Cumbayá sought to build playing out from the back, but hesitancy and errant passing invited unnecessary pressure. Chacaritas, perhaps emboldened by memory of their September triumph, grew into the contest but lacked the incisiveness that characterized that four-goal outburst weeks ago. Their brightest spell came at the hour mark, when a cleverly worked short corner led to a header that brushed the crossbar, the closest either side would come to breaking the deadlock.

Discipline briefly took center stage late in the first half as tempers flared following a late challenge in midfield. The referee kept his cards pocketed, however, favoring warnings over escalation. Throughout, both teams walked the fine line between urgency and recklessness, but the match would ultimately conclude without the drama of a red card.

By the final whistle, frustration was palpable on both sides. For Cumbayá, a third clean sheet in five games offered faint consolation, but their inability to conjure a winner left them hovering perilously at 26 points from 22 matches—just six clear of Chacaritas, whose 17-point tally continues to tether them firmly to 12th place.

The broader context only sharpens the sense of missed opportunity. Cumbayá’s recent revival—two wins in their last five, punctuated by that hard-fought away victory over Atlético Vinotinto—has been undermined by a lack of attacking bite, with just four goals in their last five outings. Chacaritas, for their part, have now gone four matches without a win, the 0-1 defeat to 22 de Julio last week underscoring their ongoing struggle to turn draws into points of substance.

Both sides entered with history lingering in the background—the memory of Chacaritas’ emphatic 4-1 win little more than a month ago, the only recent meeting marked by a flurry of goals that this rematch sorely lacked. Gone was the attacking bravado; in its place, caution and calculation prevailed.

As the dust settles on a game neither side could afford to lose but neither managed to win, the stakes of the coming weeks grow ever clearer. Cumbayá, still not out of danger, must rediscover the spark that saw them climb the table in September. For Chacaritas, time is running short to transform hard-fought draws into the victories required for survival.

With the Liga Pro Serie B’s relegation battle entering its decisive phase, both teams know stalemate is no longer sufficient currency. The next encounter—for each—may well define not just their season, but their immediate future.