Nigeria at the weekend, made a bold statement by thrashing Venezuela 4-0 in their last group game of the ongoing Fifa U20 Women’s World Cup in Colombia.
The Falconets’ win was secured with goals from Amina Bello, Chiamaka Okwuchukwu, Flourish Sabastine, and Joy Igbokwe.
Bello opened the scoring in the 16th minute, followed by Chiamaka Okwuchukwu doubling the lead twelve minutes later.
Flourish Sabastine added the third goal just before halftime, and Joy Igbokwe sealed the victory with a fourth goal in the 94th minute.
This decisive win ensures Nigeria progressed to the knockout stages of the tournament.
It could be observed that Chiamaka Okwuchukwu demonstrated her prowess by scoring once and assisting another goal.
The 19-year-old forward has now netted two goals and provided two assists in the tournament.
Despite her impressive performance, Okwuchukwu had several chances that she could have converted, suggesting improving her finishing could help further develop her game.
Goalkeeper Faith Omilana delivered a solid performance, making crucial saves despite limited opportunities to be tested.
Her two important stops in the first half played a key role in preserving Nigeria’s lead and keeping the Venezuelan attack at bay.
Venezuela struggled with Falconets’ physicality and found it challenging to cope with Nigeria’s physical attributes.
The Falconets used their physical advantage to dominate possession and maintain control of the game, which was evident throughout the match as Venezuela struggled to match their intensity.
Also, Nigeria’s passing accuracy and team cohesion saw significant improvement against Venezuela.
After struggling in previous matches, the Falconets completed 80% of their passes against Venezuela, reflecting better coordination and effective ball movement.
This enhanced passing success rate contributed to their overall dominance in the game.
Venezuelan coach Pamela Conti made two key substitutions in the first half as a response to Nigeria’s dominance.
Nazly Sanchez and Claudia Perez. were replaced by Hernandez and Vásquez respectively.
These changes aimed to address Nigeria’s relentless pressure and regain control, though they ultimately had little impact on the outcome.
