Nigeria women’s Under-17 national team, Flamingos face a tough quarter-final clash with women’s football’s most successful country the USA today as they look to go a step further than they have ever reached on three previous occasions. OLUWAMAYOMIKUN OREKOYA looks at the chances of coach Olowookere-tutored side against the free-scoring Americans.
The Flamingos of Nigeria will clash with a tough American side in the quarterfinals of the 2022 FIFA Under-17 Women’s World Cup today at the DY Patil Stadium Navi Mumbai.
The USA finished first in Group A with seven points while Nigeria was runners-up in Group B with six points.
The Americans beat Morocco 4-0 in their final Group A clash, finishing the group with seven points. The team had thoroughly thrashed hosts India in their first group match before a 1-1 draw with South Americans Brazil three days later.
Nigeria, on the other hand, narrowly lost their opening game to European powerhouse Germany by 2-1, bounced back with a convincing 4-0 win over New Zealand then a 2-1 win over Chile guaranteed their place in the knockout stages for the fourth time.
Flamingos coach, Bankole Olowookere said the team will have to adopt a cautious approach against the highest-scoring team in the competition. He noted that it would be foolhardy to throw caution into the wind and go on the offensive recklessly.
“We have respect for our opponents. I have watched the US. They have scored lots of goals and we have to be careful while playing against them,” Olowookere told NFF Tv. “We will look at the loopholes in the last three games we have played and try to make the necessary corrections.”
Surpassing Nigeria’s quarter-finals benchmark from previous tournaments serves as an extra incentive for Olowookere and his technical crew to beat their North American opponent. Nigeria has never gone past the quarterfinals in three out of five outings before India 2022.
“I will say I have achieved to get to the quarter-final as a coach but as a nation, I won’t say that. Our best has been the stage we just qualified for and so we believe in our capability that we can still achieve more. I had earlier told you that I am in India to break records.
“We must work harder to ensure Nigeria gets to the semi-final stage to outperform our previous performance at the Under 17 World Cup.
“I want to thank Nigerians. I know wherever they are now they are jubilating our qualification for the quarter-final. They have left their jobs and other things they are doing to cheer us up. It meant they counted us as being important.
“They should not stop supporting us. We promised them we were not going to disappoint them. We are going to make them proud. We need their massive support too in the quarter-final.”
On her part, USA’s Spanish coach, Natalia Astrain, said her wards are competing at an unbelievable level and the winning mentality within the team, added with more tactical education would make them unstoppable in their careers in the future. While the Americans have never won the U-17 tournament since its first edition in 2008, Astrain said that the USA has a winning mentality and with the right mixed with tactics, the team would be unstoppable as this is the first time the team is going past the group stage since their second-place finish in 2008.
Asked what she can bring to the current group of young women in the US team who are aspiring to take the next step in their careers, the former Barcelona coach said: “Well, I always think that in all my life that the US players are superwoman, that they have superpowers like special capabilities, ability and physical performance. That way the US competes at a level that is unbelievable.
“The mentality, the winning mentality that the players have in the US, I have not seen in other countries around the world. This is something very special and I was thinking if we can add this mentality and these physical superpowers with the tactical and game-understanding ingredients, we will be unstoppable”
She further went on to say that she was hopeful that this tournament creates an impact on the young girls who want to play football.
“I hope the tournament makes an impact on young girls to continue playing and fighting if they want to play soccer. It doesn’t matter if you’re a girl, you can play soccer,” she concluded.
Meanwhile, The Flamingos would have to be wary of USA’s winger, Onyeka Gamero. The 16-year-old had led the free-scoring Americans to attack in their first two group games against India and Brazil but was rested in their final group game against Morocco and the much refreshed Californian native of Nigerian descent will be fancying her chances against Nigeria.
In an interview with US Soccer, Gamero revealed one of her secrets that coach Olowokere and his Flamingos must pay rapt attention to.
“On the field, it’s always about trying to be craftier than your defender, making her move the way you want her to move,” said Gamero.
“I love to draw in defenders, and then move the ball as they dive in. You have to have the patience to wait for them to bite.
“Sometimes you speed up and sometimes you slow down, and when they freeze for that moment, that’s when you’re past them.
“Like surfing, the hardest part is the beginning, but when you feel that separation from your defender and you’re running at goal, that’s when you have the most fun.”
While the American exalts her personal attributes on the field of play, Flamingos’ striker, Opeyemi Ajakaye, said she remains unfazed by her lack of goals
The hard-working FC Robo striker has yet to get off the mark in India after she netted six goals in the qualifiers but has been a revelation in the tournament as she has scooped two successive Player of the Match Awards, against New Zealand and Chile.
“I am so excited and very happy to win it again,” the 16-year-old told NFF Tv after the Flamingos’ win over Chile. “I can’t say I am happy about my inability to score yet but I can’t force it. I will concentrate on what I am doing at present.
“If I get the opportunity to score I will take it and if it is to continue to create scoring opportunities for my teammates, I will not stop that also,” she added.