Football: Poland 2-1 Nigeria: Umejiaku on target as Flamingos begin World Cup campaign with defeat
Football: Poland 2-1 Nigeria: Umejiaku on target as Flamingos begin World Cup campaign with defeat
Nigeria's Flamingos kicked off their campaign at the 2026 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup on a disappointing note following a 2-1 defeat to Poland on Saturday.
The Nigerian youngsters suffered the loss in their opening Group B encounter at the Women’s Football Complex in Morocco, leaving them with work to do in their remaining group matches.
Poland took the lead in the 33rd minute after Wiktoria Skrzypczak converted a penalty to put her team ahead. The goal gave the European side a 1-0 advantage at half-time, forcing Nigeria to chase the game after the interval.
The Flamingos returned for the second half hoping to find an equaliser, but Poland strengthened their position in the contest when Natalia Skrok scored in the 66th minute to double her team’s advantage.
The second goal placed Nigeria under greater pressure as they attempted to recover from the two-goal deficit and keep their hopes of securing a positive result alive.
The Flamingos reduced the deficit to 2-1 in the 79th minute through Oluebube Umejiaku, who scored Nigeria’s only goal, but her effort was not enough to prevent defeat in their opening match of the tournament.
The result leaves Nigeria needing a response in their next Group B fixture as they seek to get their campaign back on track.
The Flamingos will face Puerto Rico on Tuesday, October 20, 2026, in their second group-stage match.
The encounter presents an opportunity for the Nigerian side to secure their first points of the competition before taking on defending champions Korea DPR on Friday,
Culled from BBC sports
