Nigeria’s Falconets have beat Senegal 2-1 in the third round, second leg of the 2026 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup qualifier in Dakar on Saturday.
The win means the Falconets win 3-1 on aggregate and qualify for the final round where they will take on Malawi.
The Falconets took the lead in the 18th minute through Chinaza Kindness, who rose highest to head home a cross.
Also Read: U-20 WWCQ: Falconets Will Conquer Senegal In Dakar – Aduku
In the 68th minute the Falconets went 2-0 up thanks to Prescious Oscar, as she headed home a corner kick.
Senegal pulled a goal back through Sokhna Pene who found the back of the net in the 76th minute.
By James Agberebi
3 Comments
Congrats Falconets of Nigeria for beating the Senegalese young ladies home and away. Some nay-sayers argued that the Senegal u-20 girls are a ” goal machine” because they scored 6-0 aggregate goals against a lowly/unknown women African team and that Coach Aduku fears them hence his “talking too much” before the first leg in Abeokuta, Nigeria a week ago.
I stated then, that Nigeria did not play the same opposition- having played Rwanda u-20 women- and beat then 5-0 agrregate- in the prior round, and therefore it was wrong to understate Nigeria’s pedigree vis-vis-senegal. Like we say in local parlance, “Shoe get size,” and our Falconets have proven so by beating Senegal u-20 both home and away by 3-1.
Headmistress Kindness Ifeanyi is building quite a reputation for herself with yet again another fiendish header to power Nigeria to the lead in this second leg tie.
The absence of a supplementary English commentary made the match less interesting to watch.
The Senegalese did pose a threat, particularly in this first half, as they should, but the Falconets stayed resolute.
The two goals they scored came off set-peices which is a source of adulation and condemnation. Condemnation that they couldn’t score in open play, adulation for the ruthlessness by which they troubled Senegal in most set pieces.
All in all, well done to the Falconets. It’s Malawi in May to manoeuvre before marching to the mundial.
Whereas Chinanza Kindness and Oscar Precious grabbed the headlines for the 2 goals, the 2 headers, that headed Nigeria to the precipice of World Cup qualification, another smooth operator operated convertly in midfield.
Introducing Favour Chiamaka Nwocha.
This young lady is something else. She has this abundance of needles and threads in her midfield haberdashery to knit together a garment of eloquent movements, passes and interactions that thrills and excites in equal measures.
She was part of a high-pressing front line that forced Senegal into several defensive errors early in the match, leading to Nigeria’s dominant 2–0 lead before Senegal pulled one back late in the game. Her corner kicks were a constant menace, clocking an assist and causing several near misses.
Spotting jersey number 2, she made a 360° swivel, sending the hijab-wearing Senegalese midfielder to the mat of frustration before then delivering a delicious defence splitting pass to Shakirat Moshood.
She would later repeat a similar trick in 60 minutes producing an elaborate step-over to then cross into the 18 yard box.
She then produced a hattrick of this manoeuvre in 62 minutes, leading 2 Senegalese defenders up the creek without a paddle with her 360, before bursting open their defence with a delicate, yet dangerous through pass.
Every touch, tap or trick from Nwocha injected credibility and class into Nigeria’s midfield infrastructure on a day that went on to announce her as a star in the making.
Honourable mention must be made of the Falconets’ defence that proved to be the promontory that prevented the Senegalese forwards from making enough headway to draw the game level.