25 years ago the first classic ended 0-0 at the Monumental Stadium

It was the first official match between classic rivals Barcelona and Emelec in the newly built Monumental Stadium of the yellow team 25 years ago, in 1988.

Today they face each other in  a new confrontation between traditional rivals, when Barcelona is the current champion and Emelec is the tournament leader. The expectation, as always, attracts thousands of fans and the national interest.

Emelec comes as favorite, with wide opportunities to win the first stage, with which it would qualify for the championship final, the Copa Libertadores and the South American Cup, and has even more chances after Deportivo Quito draw against club Macara 0 – 0 yesterday. Barcelona, with a poor start on the tournament, plays positioned in the middle of the scoreboard and with little chance of being first.

The first official Classic at the stadium built on the shores of the Estero Salado was held on a Wednesday, September 7, 1988. The match between the yellow and the blue teams was the preliminary game before a friendly one between Ecuador and Paraguay, won by the foreign team 1-5. Jorge Taverna, for the yellow team, and Jesus Cardenas, for the blue one, were the scorers, while Carlos Luis Morales and Xavier Baldriz, were the goalkeepers.

Emelec won the first classic in the Monumental Stadium, which involved other teams such as Peñarol and Barcelona of Spain. It won against the yellow team 1-0. But Barcelona fans remember that in 1990 they won, and eliminated Emelec by 1-0 in the quarterfinals of Copa Libertadores, one of its most notorious triumphs.

In the Monumental Stadium, 58 Classic matches have been played, with 17 victories for Barcelona (61 goals scored), 15 for Emelec (51 goals) and 26 draws.