Nigeria’s Falconets produced a superb knockout-stage performance on Thursday, beating England 3-0 in the Round of 16 of the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Poland, Soccernet.ng reports.
Tosin Rafiu opened the scoring in the seventh minute before Seimeyeha Janet Akekoromowei doubled Nigeria’s lead two minutes after the restart. Mary Mamadu added a third in the 73rd minute as Moses Aduku’s team booked their place in the quarter-finals.
The result also inspired Nigeria into the record books against England. The 3-0 scoreline is the largest winning margin recorded in a World Cup meeting between the two countries across the senior men’s, senior women’s and U20 women’s teams. England and Nigeria had previously met three times at the U20 Women’s World Cup, with Nigeria winning 2-1 in 2014 and the other two matches ending 1-1 in 2008 and 2010.
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The Falconets arrived at the knockout stage after finishing second in Group F with four points. They lost 2-0 to Spain, drew 0-0 with China and then exploded into life with a 10-1 win over New Caledonia.
England also finished second in their group. The Young Lionesses drew 1-1 with Canada, defeated Tanzania 5-1 and lost 2-1 to Brazil.
Nigeria: Rafiu strikes, Uzoma stands tall
Nigeria needed only seven minutes to take control. Rafiu found the breakthrough early, giving England goalkeeper Katie Cox little time to settle into the match.
England tried to respond and were handed a major chance to level the match when Rachel Maltby stepped up from the penalty spot.
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Christiana Uzoma had other ideas. The Falconets captain produced a crucial save to deny Maltby and protect Nigeria’s narrow advantage. Her intervention gave Nigeria a huge lift and kept England from taking momentum into the break.
Nigeria therefore went into half-time 1-0 ahead, with Uzoma’s penalty save proving just as important as Rafiu’s early finish.
The goalkeeper had already been part of a Nigeria defence that conceded only three goals in the group stage. Her performance against England gave the Falconets the platform they needed to attack the second half with confidence.
Nigeria’s defensive work had been an area coach Moses Aduku wanted to improve after the 10-1 win over New Caledonia. Aduku had admitted that his team had conceded too many goals earlier in the tournament and wanted a stronger showing at the back. Against England, the response was clear.
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Akekoromowei and Mamadu finish the job
Nigeria doubled their advantage just two minutes into the second half. Akekoromowei struck in the 47th minute to make it 2-0 and put England under serious pressure.
The Benfica forward had already scored against New Caledonia in Nigeria’s 10-1 group-stage win, when she headed in the third goal of the match.
Her second goal of the tournament against England was even more important. England now needed three goals to stay alive, but Nigeria refused to give the Young Lionesses a route back into the contest.
Mamadu completed the scoring in the 73rd minute, sending the Falconets three goals clear. That goal ended England’s hopes and turned Nigeria’s quarter-final place into a formality in the closing stages.
The final whistle confirmed a 3-0 victory and another major step in Nigeria’s long history at the U20 Women’s World Cup.
The Falconets had entered the tournament as two-time runners-up and survived a difficult start in Poland, after taking only one point from their first two matches.
In the quarter finals, the Falconets will face either hosts Poland or high-flying Colombia.
