FIFAWWC: Super Falcons upbeat ahead clash with England

Despite some trepidation among Nigerian football fans, the Super Falcons are upbeat ahead of a make-or-break clash with European giants, England, in the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup Round of 16 match to be decided on Monday, August 7 at the Suncorp Stadium in Brisbane, Australia.

Victory over the Three Lionesses will make it the second time that the Super Falcons will be reaching the World Cup Quarter-finals. The last time the Super Falcons reached the quarter-finals was at the 1999 edition in the USA when the team was under the tutelage of Late Coach Ismaila Mabo.

To reach the knock-out stage, the Super Falcons who found themselves in the ‘group of death’ had to navigate their way through against Australia who are the co-hosts, Olympic champions Canada and debuts Republic of Ireland.

The Super Falcons avoided defeat in all three group-stage matches for the first time in history, with a win and two draws to finish second with five points behind Australia.

Nigeria had forced Olympic champions Canada to a goalless draw in the opening match, won in convincing fashion by stunning co-hosts Australia 3-2, and then sealed a place in the next round after a goalless draw with the Republic of Ireland.

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This is the third time the Falcons will progress from the group stage as they became the first African team to keep two clean sheets at the Women’s World Cup while England will make their fifth group stage appearance.

Ahead of the game on Monday, Head Coach of the Super Falcons,  Randy Waldrum said her girls can pull off the impossible.

“When you look at the Olympic gold medallists [Canada] and Australia and Ireland as well, if you were to ask me before the tournament realistically what the odds were of doing that, I probably wouldn’t have believed.

“But it’s a testament to these players. They’ve not been given everything that maybe other federations have but once they got the opportunity to get here, they put everything into it. I just feel like they all believe we’re destined for something special here.

“Bring on the European champions. It seems like it’s fitting that we get them. We will come up with a plan so don’t count us out,” he said in a chat with AFP.

In the same vein, Atletico Madrid midfielder, Rasheedat Ajibade said playing against a big team as England was not a big deal for them.

“We are used to playing the big teams. We played against the Olympic champions but we respect England so much,” she said.

Also defender, Ashleigh Plumptre who switched her nationality from England to Nigeria said she had a feeling she could be playing against familiar foes.

“It will be a special moment for me as I grew up playing with a lot of them. I had a feeling it was going to happen,” she said.

However, a former Super Falcons goalkeeper, Rachael Ayegba, who represented Nigeria between 2001 and 2010 is keeping her options open as she said any of the teams can go through.

“Every team has a weak point and England currently have some injuries. When Nigeria beat Australia, the hosts actually played well but we overpowered them with our strength and power.

“That’s our weapon that we have to use. If we can do that, then the game is 50/50,” Ayegba told the BBC.

Meanwhile, the Super Falcons and the Lionesses of England have met three times with the first meeting in a FIFA Women’s World Cup in 1995.

On June 10, 1995, England defeated Nigeria 3-2 in Karlstad, Sweden but in 2002, the Super Falcons defeated the Lionesses 1-0 at Norwich City FC’s Carrow Road stadium. Florence Omagbemi scored the lone goal in that friendly game.

The Nigerians kept the winning streak in 2004 as they again defeated England 3-0 at the Madejski Stadium of Reading FC with Rita Nwadike and a brace from Perpetual Nkwocha giving the Super Falcons a comfortable victory.

A win for Nigeria against England will ensure the Falcons equal their best-ever finish at the Women’s World Cup by reaching the quarter-final for the first time since 1999.