Nigeria’s U-17 women’s team, the Flamingos, took a giant step towards qualifying for the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup with a 4-0 thrashing of Algeria in the first leg of their final qualifying match. The team’s coach, Bankole Olowookere, expressed delight at the win, saying, “I’m grateful to God for the Flamingos 4-0 win against Algeria today in Ikenne. I appreciate the support from Nigerians who came out in their large numbers to cheer the Flamingos to victory.”
The Flamingos dominated the match from the start, with Queen Joseph scoring a brace, Zainab Raji, and substitute Aishat Animashaun adding to the scoreline. Joseph opened the scoring in the first minute, Raji doubled the lead in the 13th minute, and Joseph completed her brace in the 17th minute. Animashaun sealed the win with a sublime shot from outside the box in the closing moments.
After the match, NFF President Ibrahim Gusau announced a cash gift of N6 million for the girls, saying, “The road to Morocco 2025 is almost complete, and we want to reduce the pressure of the return leg by securing a big win at home.” Olowookere had set the tone before the match, stating, “We have been working very hard to correct the lapses noticed in our last matches, and we believe we are in good form to achieve a handsome win here and then go all out in the second leg in Algeria.”
The Flamingos are now in pole position to qualify for the 2025 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in Morocco, having reached seven of the eight previous tournaments. The team will face Algeria again in the return leg on Friday, with the winner on aggregate to qualify as one of Africa’s five flag-bearers at the tournament.
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