It all started with Eloy Room. Back in 2015, the FIFA World Cup™ project was little more than a pipe dream, and a special night in Kansas City seemed a million miles away. Patrick Kluivert, the legendary striker-turned-Curaçao coach, was the one who brought Room on board to represent the small island of 156,000 people.
Kluivert predicted at the time that others would follow in his footsteps, a remark that now seems almost prophetic. Room did not hesitate for a second, fuelled by the far-fetched possibility of playing in a World Cup; the goalkeeper became the cornerstone of the project, paving the way for many more players to follow.
Eleven years later, Eloy Room’s name reverberated across every corner of the footballing world. Curaçao secured their first ever World Cup point thanks to a, with a hint of a miracle, against Ecuador. The 37-year-old goalkeeper was the hero, producing a historic 15-save performance, just one short of the record set by Tim Howard in the Round of 16 but still the best return ever seen in 90 World Cup minutes.
“This is exactly what I dreamed of when I first started out,” Room said in an interview with FIFA. “The project began eleven years ago with a simple aim: to qualify for the World Cup. I’m proud as punch because we’ve come from nothing.
“After the Germany game, we wanted to show the world who we are, and I think today we showed a glimpse of what we’re capable of. We showed we can fight tooth and nail, and against a very capable Ecuador side, we proved we also know how to play football. This is bigger than football.”
Room’s unforgettable night started almost immediately, when he pulled off a stunning point-blank save from Enner Valencia inside two minutes during an early Ecuador attack. It was the first great save in what became an unforgettable night.
“As a goalkeeper, that kind of moment gives you confidence and also gives the team a lift,” Room reflected. “From then on, I knew we were going to be under the cosh the whole game. I just felt unbeatable, like nothing was going to get past me, which was an incredible feeling.
“I can’t remember every stop off the top of my head, but that one was the most important as it set the tone for the match. Had it gone in, it would have completely changed the course of the game.”
For Room, there was no question that the display against Ecuador was a defining moment in his life in football.
“It was the finest performance of my career,” Room said. “I played in the 2019 Gold Cup here in the USA, against Honduras. I pulled off 15 saves in that game too, which was amazing. We ran out 1-0 winners, with Leandro Bacuna’s goal proving decisive. But this one tops it, because it was at the World Cup against Ecuador.”
Room's Curaçao team-mates were unsurprisingly queuing up to sing their goalkeeper's praises, with captain Leandro Bacuna leading the charge.
“I’m absolutely over the moon for Eloy, he’s earned it, he deserved to put in a solid performance,” Bacuna said. “In the last few games, he had shipped five goals against Australia in March, then four against Scotland and seven at the hands of Germany.
“He’s a top-class goalkeeper, but things just weren’t clicking for him. He was out of this world today, and helped us by making the saves he was expected to deal with.”
Tahith Chong, one of the other standout performers and the only Curaçao-born player, added: “Eloy is unbelievable. He’s playing at the top of his game now, but he’s done it for us in the past as well. It’s no surprise to us.
“Maybe the rest of the world are seeing it for the first time now, but we know exactly what he’s capable of. We wouldn’t be where we are without him.”
A quick look back over the past ten years confirms Chong’s point. Room had been instrumental against Jamaica in Curaçao’s Caribbean Cup success in 2017, in the 2019 Gold Cup quarter-final run, and in the recent qualifiers that sealed the first-ever World Cup qualification in his country’s history.
In Kansas City, he cemented his status as a legend and the heartbeat of as they stood firm.
"I’ve never seen him play like that," a smiling Advocaat joked after the draw.
Room’s opposite number, Hernan Galindez, who also produced a couple of fine stops to keep Ecuador in the game, was among the first to acknowledge his impact despite the team’s frustration.
"He had the night of his life," Galindez reflected. "I waited for him after the game to tell him, because he was out of this world. I don’t want to sound disrespectful, but as a goalkeeper you can’t be expected to make 15 saves every match. He was unbelievable."
Room, 37, was born in the Dutch city of Nijmegen and currently plying his trade for Miami FC following a stint at PSV Eindhoven, was at the heart of a special celebration. After breaking down in tears on the Kansas City pitch, he paid tribute to his team-mate Jarzinho Pieter, a goalkeeper often called upon by the national side, who tragically died during a national team trip to Haiti.
"I think he was there; I felt him beside me again. He’s always with me. And I’m certain he was with me today."
Sources: FIFA Official
