Fifteen saves. One goalkeeper. One extraordinary afternoon that nobody inside that stadium — including King Willem-Alexander and Queen Máxima of the Netherlands, watching from the stands — will ever forget. Eloy Room, a 37-year-old who has spent most of his career warming benches in the Eredivisie, walked into World Cup legend on Tuesday as Curaçao held Ecuador to a goalless draw and secured their first-ever point at a World Cup finals.

Room fell just one save short of Tim Howard's all-time record of 16 in a single men's World Cup game, set during the United States' dramatic run at Brazil 2014 — though that total included extra time. "I'm a bit annoyed that I didn't get the record in the end," Room admitted with a grin, "but I think Tim Howard was sweating on it a bit." He was left smiling even wider after Queen Máxima visited the dressing room to congratulate him personally with a kiss. The result is all the more remarkable given the context.

Just days earlier, Dick Advocaat's side had been hammered 7-1 by Germany. Advocaat — already the oldest manager ever to take charge at a World Cup — was moved to tears at the final whistle. "We have come from nothing and they fought like lions," he said. "It will be a big party on the island tonight and they deserve it.

" An estimated 5% of Curaçao's entire population of 160,000 had made the journey to the United States to cheer them on — and they had plenty to cheer about. For Ecuador, the silence was deafening. Their own supporters jeered them off the pitch after 27 shots produced zero goals. Coach Sebastián Beccacece struggled for answers: "There are things you cannot explain in football.

" Ecuador must now beat Germany in their final group game to have any hope of advancing — a result that, given recent evidence, nobody is taking for granted.