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Flamingos head coach Akeem Busari has praised his players for their determination and fighting spirit after Nigeria secured a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Venezuela to book a place in the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup semi-finals.
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Captain Aishat Oduntan emerged as Nigeria’s heroine after converting a decisive 89th-minute penalty to send the Flamingos into the last four for the first time since their historic third-place finish at the 2022 edition in India.
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Busari admitted that his team made some mistakes during the encounter but expressed delight at their resilience and determination to keep pushing until the final whistle, describing the semi-final qualification as a dream come true.
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The Flamingos coach has shifted his attention to Wednesday’s semi-final showdown against Brazil, insisting that his players are determined to give their best and make Nigeria proud, following Brazil’s 2-1 victory over China.
November 02, (THEWILL) – Flamingos head coach, Akeem Busari, has showered praise on the players following the hard-fought 1-0 win over Venezuela to qualify for the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup semi-finals on Sunday.
Captain Aishat Oduntan scored the only goal of the game from the penalty spot in the 89th minute to send Nigeria into the last four of the tournament.
Prior to facing Nigeria, Venezuela stunned Germany in the second round; however, they failed to find their bearing in the quarter-final tie.
The Flamingos qualified for the semi-finals for the first time since their historic third-place finish at the 2022 edition in India.
The team’s coach, Akeem Busari, expressed pride in the team’s performance against Venezuela.
He said: “We gave everything on the pitch tonight. We wanted to keep the ball and play our game, but we made some mistakes. Still, we kept pushing until the very end. Reaching the semi-finals is a dream come true for me and a great achievement.”
Busari is targeting victory against Brazil in the semi-finals on Wednesday.
He added: “I’m looking forward to it because I want to make my country proud. We want to give our best in the next match and show everyone what we can do.”
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Meanwhile, Venezuela head coach, Dayana Frías, blamed a costly mistake for the team’s elimination.
He said: “It was a good performance overall, but I think we made one mistake and paid for it. As for the experience, it’s been really beautiful and rewarding.”
“I’m happy to see how much they’ve grown and how they’ve developed as footballers throughout the tournament. We also have seven players who are eligible to play again next year, so I think they’re ready to come back and keep growing”.
Brazil defeated China 2-1 to qualify for the last four; in the other semi-final clash, North Korea will face Japan.
