By Akinwale Kasali
An Esther Onyenezide brace from the penalty spot with a late Olise Strike cancelled out Canadian, Helen Novak second minute strike to give the Falconets of Nigeria a 3-1 win and the maximum points to top Group D at the ongoing FIFA Under-20 Women World Cup in Costa Rica played in the hours of today, August 18th, 2022, at the San Jose Stadium.
The Nigerian Ladies had already qualified for the Quarter Finals of the Championship having won their first two matches against France and South Korea by solitary goals.
They proved their supremacy as contenders for the coveted trophy by defeating Canada which lost all their three Group matches.
The Falconets went into the game quite jittery after a blunder from Goalkeeper, Monle Oyono in the second minute, which made the Falconets nervy.
The Nigerian Ladies composed themselves and piled pressure on the Canadian defense which led to a foul on Okwuchuwu was led the Falconets attack and the resulting spot kick was converted by Esther Onyenezide in the 24th minute.
Eight minutes later, after a review by the Video Assistant Referee, VAR, the Falconets were another spot kick which was coolly slotted home by Onyenezide for her Third Goal of the tournament.
The first half ended with the African Team taking the lead.
As the second half commenced, the Canadians searched for the needed equalizer but to no avail.
In added time, substitute, Joy Olise added the third goal for Nigeria, to give the team a comfortable victory heading into the knockout phase.
The Falconets will face Netherlands in the Quarter Finals on Sunday, while France that finished runners up in the Group behind Nigeria will face Japan.
