Nigeria’s Flamingos have qualified for the Round of 16 at the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in Morocco after recording an impressive 3–1 victory over defending champions Korea DPR yesterday.
The Nigerian girls, coached by Akeem Busari, produced an outstanding performance to overcome the two-time defending champions and secure their place in the knockout stage. Oluwakemi Adegbuyi opened the scoring for Nigeria in the 15th minute, giving the Flamingos an early advantage.
Oluebube Umejiaku doubled the lead in the 38th minute, finishing off a fine assist from Tosin Rafiu to put Nigeria firmly in control.
Kanyinsola Yusuf extended the lead to three goals in the 56th minute with a superb free-kick, leaving the defending champions with a difficult task. Korea DPR pulled one goal back through Yu Jong Hyang in the 82nd minute, but the Flamingos held on to secure a memorable victory. Adegbuyi appeared to have scored a fourth goal in the 88th minute, but following a video review, the referee disallowed the effort for a foul in the build-up.
The victory completed Nigeria’s group-stage campaign on six points, following a 2–1 defeat to Poland in their opening match and a 2–0 win over Puerto Rico in their second fixture. Poland defeated Puerto Rico 6–2 in the other Group B fixture, meaning Poland, Nigeria and Korea DPR finished the group stage all level on six points.