July 18, (THEWILL) — Nigeria whipped Zambia 5-0 in their Women’s Africa Cup of Nations quarter-final at the Larbi Zaouli Stadium in Casablanca on Friday, maintaining their perfect record of reaching the tournament’s semi-finals.
The Super Falcons struck early through Osinachi Ohale after just 90 seconds, before Esther Okoronkwo, Chinwendu Ihezuo, Oluwatosin Demehin, and Folashade Ijamilusi completed a comprehensive victory over the pre-tournament favourites.
The nine-time champions had revenge on their minds after losing 1-0 to Zambia in the bronze medal match three years ago, and they delivered it emphatically.
The match was effectively decided by half-time with Nigeria leading 3-0 following a dominant first-half display. Ohale opened the scoring with a well-placed header from Okoronkwo’s cross, before the provider turned scorer on 33 minutes.
Okoronkwo collected possession on the edge of the six-yard box and was afforded too much time to turn and fire low past Zambian goalkeeper Ngambo Musole.
Nigeria goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie then launched a long ball that Zambia failed to clear, allowing Ihezuo to run through and finish calmly beyond Musole just before the interval.
The second half brought two more goals for the rampant Nigerians, with Demehin heading home from a free-kick delivery inside the six-yard box. Ijamilusi then capped the victory with her first WAFCON goal, tapping home unopposed at the back post to complete the rout.
Zambia, which had carried high expectations into the tournament, failed to register a single shot on target throughout the entire 90 minutes, underlining the gulf in class between the two sides.
Nigeria’s defensive record remains unblemished in Morocco, having not conceded a goal in four matches.
However, their attacking output had been modest before Friday’s explosion, with just four goals in their three group-stage fixtures.
Coach Justin Madugu will be encouraged that his team appears to have found their scoring touch at the crucial stage of the competition, with both defensive solidity and attacking fluency now evident.
The Super Falcons will face either South Africa or Senegal in Tuesday’s semi-final at the same Casablanca venue, with that quarter-final clash taking place on Saturday.
The winner of Tuesday’s semi-final will advance to the final in Rabat on July 26, where Nigeria will be seeking to add to their record nine continental titles.
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.
