Travel disruption delayed the arrival of Super Falcons midfielder Deborah Abiodun and forward Gift Monday at Nigeria’s training camp in Casablanca after their scheduled flight from the United States was cancelled due to technical reasons, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.
According to the Nigeria Football Federation, both players arrived at the airport only to learn that their flight had been cancelled, forcing the federation to purchase fresh tickets for the duo to continue their journey to Morocco.
Despite the setback, the Super Falcons’ camp swelled to 23 players on Tuesday afternoon following the arrival of forward Folashade Ijamilusi from China.
The former junior international, who scored twice at the last edition of the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, including Nigeria’s equaliser in their dramatic 3-2 comeback victory over hosts Morocco in the final, landed in Casablanca shortly before 3pm.
Ijamilusi plays for Chinese club Liaoning Shenyang Shenbei Hefeng.
Abiodun and Gift will complete coach Justine Madugu’s 25-player squad for the tournament.
The 10-time African champions have continued preparations at the La Noria Club in Casablanca ahead of their departure to Morocco’s administrative capital, Rabat, where they will play their Group C matches against Malawi, Zambia and Egypt.
The team’s arrival meeting with officials of the Confederation of African Football and the Local Organising Committee is scheduled for Saturday, July 25.
Nigeria head into the 2026 WAFCON as defending champions and the most successful nation in the competition’s history with 10 titles.
The Super Falcons will begin their title defence against Malawi on Tuesday, July 28, before facing Zambia on Saturday, August 1, and Egypt four days later in their final Group C fixture.
This year’s tournament will also serve as the African qualifiers for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil. The four semi-finalists will qualify automatically, while one additional team will secure a place through the intercontinental play-offs.
