February 16, (THEWILL) – The Nigerian Super Falcons suffered a disappointing start to their Revelations Cup campaign, losing 1-0 to the host country, Mexico, at the Leon Stadium early on Thursday.
Despite an encouraging start for both teams, the the Falcons were without inspirational Barcelona striker, Asisat Oshoala, who was unable to join the team’s base on time for the game. It showed that they were lacking the cutting edge to punish their opponents, and a brilliant free kick by striker Ifeoma Onumonu at the edge of the Mexican box was cleared to safety by the north Americans’ defensive wall.
The Falcons had their own chance to score through Toni Payne, but the opportunity went begging. Mexico almost took the lead in the 34th minute through Lizabeth Ovalle, who missed a sitter. The Nigerian team suffered a setback before the halftime break when defender Rofiat Imuran was stretchered off and replaced by Glory Ogbonna, who received a yellow card for a bad foul barely two minutes after coming on.
The game’s only goal came in the 84th minute when Kiana Palacios broke the deadlock and put Mexico ahead. The loss nonetheless, the nine-time African champions will seek to bounce back when they face Colombia in their second game on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Falcons head coach Randy Waldrum made two changes after the restart, bringing in Uchenna Kanu and Jennifer Echegili for Francesca Ordega and Chinwendu Ihezuo. Despite the loss, the Nigerian team will be looking to build on some promising attacking moments and shore up their defense ahead of their next game.
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.
