Nigeria beat Venezuela 1-0 on Sunday to reach the semi-finals of the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in Morocco, with defender Azeezat Oduntan scoring a penalty in the closing minutes.
Forward Oluebube Umejiaku, the team’s top scorer, was fouled in the box, and the referee kept the penalty after a VAR review. Goalkeeper Jane Ijirigho made several saves as Venezuela, who knocked out Germany in the last 16, looked for chances on the counter-attack.
Reaching the last four means the Flamingos have already gone further than at the previous edition, which the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) said they were aiming for before the match at the Mohammed VI Football Complex in Salé.
It was their fourth win in a row. Coach Hakeem Busari’s side lost their opening group match to Poland, then beat Puerto Rico and defending champions North Korea, and beat Mexico 2-1 in the round of 16.
The Flamingos qualified for the tournament in July after beating Benin.
Nigeria play Brazil, who beat China 2-1 in their quarter-final, for a place in the final on 4 November.
Sources: Nigeria Football Federation; NFF squad list; Daily Trust; Vanguard
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