The Flamingos of Nigeria revived their 2026 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup campaign with a 2-0 win over Puerto Rico in their second Group B match in Morocco on Tuesday night, October 20.
Oluwakemi Adegbuyi opened the scoring in the 25th minute, while substitute Precious Oscar added a second in the 93rd minute at the Mohammed VI Football Complex.
The win gave the Flamingos their first three points of the tournament following their 2-1 defeat to Poland in their opening match on Saturday.
Head coach Akeem Busari made tactical adjustments to improve his side’s midfield control and defensive organisation, helping the Flamingos manage the match against tournament debutants Puerto Rico.
Nigeria took the lead through Adegbuyi after applying early pressure and maintained their advantage with disciplined defending and effective pressing. The team restricted Puerto Rico’s attacking opportunities before Oscar scored in stoppage time to seal the win.
Speaking after the match, Busari described the encounter as a difficult game, noting that both teams understood the importance of the result.
“It was a strong win because Puerto Rico knew it was a game that would decide their fate so it was a very tough game for both sides. We were unable to convert our chances in the first half, fortunately we got the second goal towards the tail end of the second half but it was a very rough game, they are not pushing overs,” he said.
The coach also praised his players for showing greater composure after their opening defeat to Poland, highlighting the importance of psychological preparation in helping the young squad recover.
“As an handler when you are down you look at it and think how so you comeback, it’s all about psyching and these are young players so all they need is counselling and what to do and today they were exceptional, they were more calm than the Poland game,” he said.
The result leaves Nigeria with three points from two matches ahead of their final Group B fixture against leaders DPR Korea on Friday, October 23.
DPR Korea secured their place in the knockout stage after thrashing Poland 6-1 earlier on Tuesday.
Join the conversation
Comments
Want to discuss? Please read our Commenting Policy first.