Zestful and Zappy Super Falcons Zealously Zoom Past Zambia 1:0

What a match! What a team! What an outcome!

playing with 1 woman down for the better part of 1 hour, the irrepressible Super Falcons dug deep to dig out a heartwarming 1:0 victory against the obdurate but ultimately frustrated Copper Queens of Zambia, effectively reigniting our hopes of reaching the summit at this tournament.

And what better way to do it than to turn to our only cultural and historical icon who rolled back the years, rolled her sleeves to roll the ball into the net via a ricochet in just 8 minutes for 1:0.

Madugu’s early-game strategy and thinking behind starting Oshoala from the start was evident: launch long balls from midfield for the ex-Barcelona Queen to latch on to and punish Zambia. Time after time, Ajibade and Echegini (who had an excellently solid and spectacular game) launched those long balls with impunity to Oshoala who simply breezed past the Zambian players, almost scoring earlier when her first touch let her down - she was the proverbial thorn on the tissues of the Zambians.

Madugu played an unmistakable 4-2-1-3 formation with Abiodun and Ucheibe the defensive midfield pivot behind Echegini with the trio of Kanu, Oshoala and Ajibade in front and it worked a treat.

In the first 30 minutes, Nigeria’s long ball strategy caused Zambia no end of problems, ultimately leading to the early goal. Imuran looked shaky at time in left backs with a few misplaced passes but her recovery was commendable as she would always regain composure.

Nnadozie pinched a tricky ball away as her defenders stood firm, tall and focused with help coming from the defensive midfield.

Oshoala, Kanu, Echegini, and Ajibade often demonstrated a spark of great chemistry, exchanging insightful passes that held promise and created opportunities. Kanu, especially, was as cool as cucumber in possession, retaining the ball, using it judiciously and, at times, later on, injecting flair in displacing a number of Zambians with silky movements that helped Nigeria dictate tempo.

After 30 minutes, The Falcons were as firm as formica in defence, maybe too firm as Demehin’s manhandling of Banda earned her her marching orders, leaving Nigeria short. Demehin did what she had to do, for me, and I felt she was hard done by.

Despite this setback, The Falcons remained neat and tidy in possession as they marshalled the midfield with authority and intent, quickly closing down the Zambians and not giving them time to do damage. Ajibade too would earn a yellow card whilst Oshoala ran the channels well with high pressing that kept Zambian defenders on their toes.

I recall an excellent sliding tackle inside the 18 yard box from Ohale who, it must be said, also had an excellent outing with marking, interceptions and positioning that oozed maturity and cool-headedness.

Oladipo was introduced and she initially showed jitters with 1 misplaced pass but she soon got her head together, playing it straight, firm and forthright.

The Super Falcons, despite playing with a 1 woman deficit, were tight and incredibly compact. They overloaded the Zambians with bodies to retrieve possession; their rotation across the pitch was effective with the likes of Oshoala, Ajibade, Ohale and Echegini operating effectively outside their immediate positions; shadow markings were effective; transition from defence to attack was robust and, in all, they imposed their will on Zambia with curtailment that meant Demehin's red card wasn't fully exploited.

In the last 30 minutes, Oladipo continued to be firm, cutting off passing lanes, retrieving the ball and recycling possession. Ihezuo would latch on to another long ball from deep, round the keeper only to make a mess of the finish.

Echegini was simply unbelievably unplayable: running with the ball before being fouled in midfield. Oladipo overlapped with intent, delivering a delightful cross. Ohale’s emphatic headed clearance did not escape me even as Oladipo and Ajibade combined severally to cause problems. Nnadozie looked dialled in all night whilst Alozie was a picture of perfection, poise and panache in her movements, contact with the ball, interactions and shadow-marking.

Honourable mention to Abiodun and Ucheibe whose steely resolve and stellar applications on and off the ball curtailed Zambia’s ambitions.

All in all it was great. Zambia failed to capitalize on their numerical advantage, thanks to a monumental application of focus, concentration, will power and determination from the entire Super Falcons architecture. The architectural design from Madugu was executed to perfection on the day the Super Falcons reminded the world why, despite playing with a woman short, they remain undisputed title contenders in this tournament.