Former Ipswich Town loanee Jeremy Sarmiento scored for Ecuador on his birthday as they beat Honduras 2-1 in Connecticut.

The winger, who scored three goals in 20 games during his stint at Portman Road, returned to international duty this year and was subsequently called up by La Tri for their upcoming Copa America campaign.

He started up front in their 1-0 defeat to Argentina last week, touching the ball just 17 times during his 78 minutes on the pitch, and was subsequently dropped for their 3-1 win against Bolivia four days later.

Manager Felix Sanchez Bas started him on the left against Honduras last night, and it took him just eight minutes to get onto the scoresheet, latching onto a low ball from Chelsea's Moises Caicedo before curling a shot into the back of the net.

They were pegged back just before the half-hour mark by Bryan Rochez's penalty, but Bayer Leverkusen's Piero Hincapie popped up with a close-range header in the 89th minute to seal the win.

Ecuador now look ahead to the start of the Copa America, with their openin game against Venezuela set to kick-off at 11pm BST on Saturday, June 22nd.

Speaking to reporters after the game, Sarmiento said: "I feel great, but it's not just about me today, it's about the team. We worked hard in these couple of friendly games and today we struggled throughout the whole game, but we're happy to come out on top.

"We have a young team, but a mix of experience as well that helps the young guys like me. We're coming here with everything we've got, the Copa America, which is very important for us. Why not dream big and maybe win it?

"We're working hard for this. Day-by-day we're getting closer to the team as well, so this is our main objective."

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After admitting that he isn't rooting for England to win Euro 2024, Sarmiento was asked about his future.

When he first joined Ipswich on loan in January, it was reported that the Blues would have an option to extend that deal for another 12 months. However, the 22-year-old confirmed that he's yet to speak to new boss Fabian Hurzeler, with discussions about next season yet to take place.

"I have pre-season to do, where I'll go back with Brighton. Then we'll see what happens."