Young Lionesses underrated Falconets – Aduku

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Nigeria U-20 women’s coach Moses Aduku believes England underestimated his side before the Young Lionesses were thumped 3-0 by the Falconets in their round of 16 clash at the 2026 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Poland on Thursday, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.

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The Falconets, who advanced to the knockout stage as runners-up in Group F, faced England, who topped Group F, at the Stadion Miejski Bielsko-Biała.

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Aduku’s girls wasted no time in taking the game to their opponents and were rewarded in the eighth minute when Tosin Rafiu broke the deadlock with a composed finish to put Nigeria 1-0 ahead.

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The goal came after sustained early pressure from Nigeria, with Ramotalahi Kareem and Precious Oscar also testing the England defence.

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England responded through Lily Dent, Princess Ademiluyi and Rachel Maltby, but Nigeria’s defence stood firm.

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A VAR review for a possible penalty in the 33rd minute briefly threatened to swing the momentum in England’s favour, but goalkeeper Christiana Uzoma came to Nigeria’s rescue, saving Rachel Maltby’s spot-kick to preserve the lead.

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Uzoma produced another impressive display as Nigeria withstood England’s pressure before the break.

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Just two minutes after the restart, Janet Akekoromowei doubled Nigeria’s advantage with a clinical strike in the 47th minute, putting the Young Lionesses under further pressure.

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Mary Mamudu, who replaced Kareem in the 61st minute, made an immediate impact, sealing Nigeria’s victory in the 73rd minute when she latched onto Precious Oscar’s assist before slotting home the third goal.

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Aduku was delighted with the result but warned his players against dwelling on the victory.

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“The English team is a very good side and I think they underrated us. They never believed that we could play up to this level,” Aduku told FIFA.com after the game.

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“But I said after the group stage that the World Cup is just starting. After the game, I told the players, ‘This game is gone. Let’s have a short celebration because we have the next game to play, so let’s focus on the next one.’”

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The Falconets will face Colombia in the quarter-finals on Sunday. The Colombians beat hosts Poland 1-0 in the last round of 16 game on Thursday as well.

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The quarter-final is scheduled for the Władysław Król Municipal Stadium in Łódź, with kick-off at 2pm Nigeria time.

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