On Tuesday, October 11, the Nigerian U17 women’s national team will play their German counterparts in Group B’s opening matchup of the 2022 FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup.
Both sides, despite having a strong history in the sport, have never taken home the cadet World Cup. They will be quite motivated to change that in India.
Nigeria has a long history at the competition; they have participated in five of the previous six iterations and have three times advanced to the quarterfinal round (in 2010, 2012, and 2014).
But the 2016 edition’s disappointment in Jordan continues. For the first time in history, the Flamingoes failed to score and placed last in a group that also included North Korea, Brazil, and England.
The successor of that uninspiring Flamingoes side then failed to qualify for Uruguay 2018.
The present crop, under the tutelage of head coach Bankole Olowookere, will look to bring smiles back to the faces of fans with a fine showing in India.
And it all begins with a meeting against Germany, whose best showing at the World Cup is a third-place finish in 2008.
Head-to-head
India 2022 will be the first time Nigeria meet Germany at the FIFA U17 Women’s World World Cup.
But a highly entertaining match is awaited between two attack-minded teams in the Flamingoes and Die Nationalelf.
The Germans are the most successful side at the UEFA Women’s Under-17 Championship with seven titles.
On the strength of that, the reigning European champions will be the favourites against the Nigerians.
A win for the Flamingoes will, however, set them up for a deep run at the Mundial.
Match details
Competition: FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup, India 2022
Date: October 11, 2022
Venue: Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Margao, Goa.
Kickoff time: 3:30 pm (Nigerian time)
(SN)
