Super Falcons' Abiodun Deborah and Toni Payne
BY Idris Shehu
The Super Falcons of Nigeria were defeated 1-0 by Spain in their second match at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
An 85th-minute freekick from Alexia Putellas broke Nigeria after minutes of resilient defending at La Beaujoire Stadium in Nantes on Sunday.
The defeat was the Falcons’ second in the competition, following their first-game loss to Brazil.
Randy Waldrum, Falcons head coach, made changes to the line-up that started the previous match.
Asisat Oshoala led the attack in place of Chinwendu Ihezuo, while Esther Okoronkwo started ahead of Jeniffer Echegini.
The overhaul did little to mitigate the bluntness of the team’s attack, as they struggled to convert the few chances they had amid the Spanish domination.
The world champions overwhelmed the Falcons, and the Spaniard had struck over 10 shots towards Chiamaka Nnadozie before halftime.
Falcons managed to nick a couple of chances from the onslaught, but Rasheedat Ajibade buckled and lost the ball after Oshoala had sent her free on a counterattack.
Salma Paralluelo thought she had put Spain ahead early in the second half after stabbing the ball past Nnadozie from a freekick. However, after a VAR review, her effort was later ruled offside.
But Putellas cemented the victory with a touch of brilliance after floating in a freekick which wrong-footed Nnadozie.
Falcons will play Japan in their final game of the group, and they must get at least victory to stand a chance of progressing as one of the two best third-placed teams.
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