By Mark Ogagan
Nigeria’s Falconets advanced to the knockout stages of the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup after a resounding 4-0 victory over Venezuela on Saturday.
The Falconets, led by coach Chris Danjuma, went into the match needing a positive result to qualify after a mixed group stage results.
They had previously defeated Korea Republic 1-0 in their opening game but suffered a 3-1 loss to Germany.
Nigeria started strong, with Omowunmi Bello opening the scoring in the 16th minute, assisted by Chiamaka Cristabel Okwuchukwu. Okwuchukwu, who had previously scored against Germany, added a second for Nigeria in the 28th minute, with the assist coming from Alani.
Flourish Chioma Sabastine, who had secured Nigeria’s victory against Korea Republic, made it 3-0 in stoppage time of the first half, giving the Falconets a commanding lead at the break with the Venezuela having their work cut out.
In the second half, Nigeria defended their three-goal advantage confidently.
Coach Danjuma introduced several changes, and in the dying moments of the game, Joy Igbokwe added a fourth goal, assisted by Esther Ajakaye in additional time.
The win sees Nigeria finish second in Group D, level on points with Germany but behind on goal difference.
The Falconets now await the conclusion of the group stages to learn who their opponents will be in the knockout rounds.
Discussion about this post