Nigeria’s Flamingos have booked their place in the round of 16 of the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup after cruising to a commanding 4-0 victory over Samoa in their final Group D game at the Mohammed VI Football Academy on Saturday.
The win was a crucial one for the Nigerian girls, who went into the match needing maximum points to keep their tournament hopes alive after suffering back-to-back defeats in their opening two fixtures. Their earlier results had ruled them out of automatic qualification, leaving them in a tense battle to emerge as one of the four best third-placed teams.
Determined to turn their fortunes around, the Flamingos produced a ruthless first-half display. Queen Joseph set the tone with an early opener in the 12th minute before Shakirat Moshood doubled the advantage in the 28th minute. Queen Joseph then grabbed her second goal of the day six minutes later, giving Nigeria a commanding 3-0 lead at halftime.
The team maintained their intensity after the break, and in the 67th minute, Azezat Odutan added a fourth to seal a comprehensive victory, their first of the tournament and one that ensured progression to the knockout stage.
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In the group’s other fixture, Canada edged France 2-1 to finish as group leaders with nine points, while France settled for second place. Nigeria’s win over Samoa was enough to secure their spot among the four best third-placed teams advancing to the round of 16.
Speaking after the game, head coach Bankole Olowookere praised his players for their response to earlier setbacks, highlighting their determination to stay in the competition while acknowledging areas that still need improvement.
“Our start was disappointing and we tried to make up for that. The girls are happy now, they still want to take part in the tournament, they don’t want to go home. So they just had to bring a good game to make sure that we could remain one of the contenders of this tournament. It’s good that we have strong opposition, to prepare us for the next game. We have to work on those areas where they were able to penetrate from our team.”
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