FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup: Flamingos seek second win when they face Ecuador

The Flamingos will go in search of a second consecutive win when they line up against Ecuador on Saturday night in the Dominican Republic.

Nigeria’s U-17 women’s national football team, the Flamingos, will step out for their second game of the 2024 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup on Saturday against Ecuador after blitzing New Zealand 4-1 in their opening encounter on Wednesday.

Head Coach Bankole Olowookere is confident that his team will have another great day against debutants Ecuador at the CFC Stadium in Santiago de Los Caballeros, Dominican Republic.

“Our tournament strategy is to focus on the next match; take it one match at a time. We need not look further than the next match, and now we have Ecuador in our sights. The Ecuadorians have shown, with their defeat of the host nation, that they may be debutants but not a team to be taken for granted.

“The players have recovered well from their opening match victory over New Zealand, and we are ready for Ecuador. We know that three points in that game will all but get us into the knock-out stage. It is an opportunity we will not allow to slip out of our hands.”

The win on Wednesday took Nigeria to the top of the Group A table, where they still perch courtesy of goals advantage over the Ecuadorians, who earned a 2-0 win over the Dominican Republic.

Shakirat Moshood, Taiwo Adegoke, Faridat Abdulwahab, and captain Taiwo Afolabi (Player of the Match) scored the goals that condemned the girls from Down Under to a huge defeat, and these players will seek to replicate their performances against the South Americans.

Nigeria’s top scorer in the qualifying campaign with 13 goals, forward Harmony Chidi, will look to open her goal account at the finals. Despite her efforts being repeatedly thwarted by the New Zealand defence, the upcoming clash with Ecuador presents another opportunity for her to showcase her talent on the world stage.

The match will kick off at 4 p.m. Dominican Republic time (9 p.m. Nigerian time) and be streamed live on the FIFA platform.