Players in Nigeria’s female national team, Super Falcons have chorused their determination to step up their game and take Portugal to the cleaners in their second match of the WNT Summer Series in Houston, Texas, USA.
Megasportsarena.com reports that, although the Falcons lost their first game in dramatic nd unexpected fashion against Jamaica, Coach Randy Waldrum’s lasses are blowing hot ahead of their second outing this Sunday.
Heading into the encounter, the communications department of Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) disclosed that the entire Falcons’ players they have put behind them the loss to Jamaica and are determined to earn victory against Portugal on Sunday.
Expectations are high that they will get a better result from the second fixture of their three-match programme in the Summer Series, as they were without several key players in the 1-0 loss to the Jamaicans on Thursday at BBVA Stadium in Houston, Texas.
The opening encounter, which held at the same venue where the Nigerians will confront the Portuguese on Sunday evening, saw Deneisha Blackwood, who plays her professional club game for Houston Dash (the club that uses the BBVA ground), score the game’s only goal in the 54th minute and condemned the Falcons to their first defeat in eight games.
The nine-time and current African champions had won all three matches at the Turkish Women’s Cup Tournament in Antalya in February, which was their first outing under Waldrum, who is now excited with the arrival of Bayelsa Queens of Yenagoa midfielder, Celine Ottah at the team’s Marriott Marquis Hotel abode in Houston.
Belarus-based defender, Onome Ebi and team captain, Asisat Oshoala from Barcelona Femeni of Spain were also scheduled to arrive at the team’s camp before the clash with Portugal on Sunday, having flown out of their bases in Europe on Saturday.
The additions of four-time African Player of the Year Oshoala and veteran defender Ebi, will be a huge boost for Waldrum, who had to do without the duo as well as young yet agile goalkeeper, Chiamaka Nnadozie, midfield orchestrators Ngozi Okobi-Okeoghene and Halimatu Ayinde for the game versus Jamaica.
Former youth international Nnadozie, now with FC Paris of France, has been the team’s number one in goal since the last FIFA Women’s World Cup in the country where she now plies her trade, but she will again be absent for Sunday’s game against the Portuguese.
Sunday’s clash will precede what is expected to be a night of thrills and history in the Falcons’ last match in the Summer Series, as they will tango four-time world champions and four-time Olympic Games champions, USA at Q2 Stadium in Austin, Texas.
USA have beaten the Falcons in every encounter both sides have had at the World Cup and the Olympics, but Wednesday’s tie will be the first friendly between Nigeria and the Americans, who have played only one earlier similar match against an African team, being South Africa’s Banyana Banyana.
Nigeria’s full squad at the competition has Tochukwu Oluehi, Inyene Etim, Glory Ogbonna, Ibe Abidemi, Oluwatosin Demehin, Vivian Ikechukwu, Akudo Ogbonna, Esther Okoronkwo, Gift Monday, Yewande Balogun and Joy Bokiri.
Others are Francisca Ordega, Rasheedat Ajibade, Amanda Mbadi, Toni Oyedupe Payne, Chidinma Okeke, Celine Ottah, Charity Adule, Rita Chikwelu, Michelle Alozi, Onyinyechi Zogg, Nicole Payne, Ifeoma Onomonwu and Rossa Ariyo.
Oluehi, who stopped Blackwood’s penalty in the first half on Thursday, before conceding to the same player in the 51st minute, declared ahead of Sunday’s game: “I wasn’t happy with the goal. The defence did well, remember we are a new team with time we will be better. We just need to correct our mistakes and ensure we beat Portugal.”
