October 26, (THEWILL) – The FIFA Under-17 Women’s World semifinal appearance ended in heartbreak for the Flamingos after they painfully lost to Colombia via penalty shootouts on Wednesday.
The young ladies came up against a squad that appeared to be much more superior on the field, but they showed a steely determination to hold on for a scoreless tie and give themselves a chance to win it in the penalty shootout. Unfortunately, their good fortune ran out inside the Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, in the Indian city of Goa.
Although the Flamingoes had more ball control in the first half, they only managed one shot on goal. Yesica Munoz, who thought she had put the South Americans in lead, was denied a goal by the offside flag as Colombia turned around their fortunes in the middle of the first period.
Faith Omilana, made a crucial save to stop Linda Caicedo’s goal-bound attempt early in the second half, saving the Nigerians time and time again as the Colombians pinned Nigeria back in their half. With penalties likely, Nigeria substituted Omilana for Chikamso Jiwuaka, who helped with penalty kicks against the United States.
Just as in the quarter-finals, Jiwuaka stopped one of Colombia’s penalties, only for Omamuzo Edafe, who scored two penalties in Nigeria’s victory over the USA, to miss what could have been the winning fifth kick. It meant the penalties had entered sudden death.
Comfort Folorunsho, who had previously missed a penalty against the US, was left to take the decisive Nigerian kick after Colombia’s Natalia Hernandez, scored to make the score 6-5. Luisa Agudelo, made a proper save of her kick to send the South Americans through to the finals. In the third-place match, Nigeria will face the loser of the second semi-final between Germany and Spain.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
