Nigeria’s Flamingos will keep the ball on the ground to counter Venezuela’s physical strength, coach Akeem Busari has revealed ahead of Sunday’s FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup quarter-final in Morocco.
In an interview published by FIFA on Saturday, Busari identified marking and duels as major strengths of the South Americans. He said Nigeria would respond by keeping possession and making better use of their scoring opportunities.
“We don’t have the bigger size like they do, so we’ll play more with the ball on the ground,” Busari told FIFA.
The coach also wants his players to compete for possession without allowing the occasion to overwhelm them. He said the staff would remind the youngsters of their previous knockout successes while helping them approach the match calmly.
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Busari praised the squad’s resilience but remained demanding about their performance against Mexico, saying Nigeria should have scored more despite progressing.
The Flamingos reached the last eight with a 2–1 victory over Mexico on Thursday, their third successive win since an opening defeat to Poland.
Oluebube Umejiaku broke the deadlock in the 40th minute after Mexico failed to deal with Esther Stephen’s long ball. The forward pounced and fired into the top corner, setting Nigeria on their way.
Mary Dunstan doubled the advantage in the 71st minute, finishing after a Kanyinsola Yusuf cross was only partially cleared. Emily Delgado pulled one back deep into stoppage time, but Nigeria held on to advance.
Goalkeeper Jane Ijirigho also played her part, denying Citlalli Reyes when the Mexican captain went through one-on-one. Umejiaku was named Player of the Match.
Venezuela arrive with their own statement result after eliminating Germany 1–0 in the round of 16. Diana Bravo struck in the fifth minute, and her side protected that advantage against opponents who had won all three group matches.
That victory secured Venezuela’s third quarter-final appearance in four tournament campaigns. They finished fourth in both 2014 and 2016.
Nigeria and Venezuela meet on Sunday, November 1, at Pitch 4 of the Mohammed VI Football Complex in Salé, with a semi-final place at stake.
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