Nigeria’s U20 girls, the Falconets, will aim to complete the job against hosts Senegal on Saturday despite the absence of injured striker Janet Akekoromowei, head coach Moses Aduku has said ahead of the decisive FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup qualifying clash.

Akekoromowei was forced off in the first half of last weekend’s first leg in Abeokuta after sustaining an injury and has been ruled out of the squad that travelled to Dakar on Wednesday morning.

Speaking before departure, Aduku expressed confidence that his team has learned valuable lessons from the first leg and is ready to rise to the challenge away from home.

“We will overcome because we have reviewed the match and taken a lot of lessons on board,” Aduku said. “I commend the girls for regrouping after a tough first half, adjusting tactics and showing character in the second half. We could have won by a larger margin because we created numerous opportunities in that period.

“In Senegal, we must defend resolutely and attack with purpose. We will play with focus and determination.”

The Confederation of African Football has appointed match officials from Morocco for the encounter, which will be played at Stade Lat Dior in Thies, Senegal’s third-largest city, about 70 kilometres from Dakar.

Zakia El Grini will serve as referee, assisted by Karima Khadiri and Ihsane Ennouajeli Nouajli, while Zoulaikha Harmasse will act as fourth official. Oumou Souleymane Kane of Mauritania has been named match commissioner, with Kenya’s Alice Kimani as referee assessor.

Saturday’s match is scheduled to kick off at 5 pm Senegal time (6 pm Nigeria time). The winner on aggregate will advance to the final round of the African qualifiers, with the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup finals set to take place in Poland in September.

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With exactly 500 days to go until the FIFA Women’s World Cup Brazil 2027, Brazil has begun a colourful and culturally rich countdown to the first edition of FIFA’s flagship women’s competition to be staged in South America.

Scheduled to run from 24 June 2027, the tournament will bring together 32 national teams and fans from across the globe in what organisers have described as an epic celebration of football, creativity and local culture.

The 500-day milestone marks the latest landmark on the road to 2027, following last month’s brand launch in Rio de Janeiro, where the tournament’s Official Emblem and slogan, Go Epic™, were unveiled. The visual identity draws inspiration from the Brazilian flag and the geometry of the football pitch, while cleverly intertwining the letters “W” and “M” to reflect both English and Portuguese references to women and the world.

To celebrate the countdown, Rio’s iconic Avenida Atlântica was recently transformed into a living canvas as Brazilian female artists created vibrant artworks representing each of the eight Host Cities. The street art festival paid homage to Brazil’s long-standing tradition of painting streets to support national teams, further strengthening the bond between football and urban art.

Each Host City inspired four unique illustrations, unveiled to commemorate the 500-days-to-go moment. The artworks depict scenes of celebration, city landscapes and epic football moments, capturing the emotional and communal way the sport is experienced across Brazil.

The artists involved include Massuelen Cristina (Belo Horizonte), Izzy Credo (Brasília), Terezadequinta (Fortaleza), Carla Barth (Porto Alegre), Bella Galvão (Recife), Paula Cruz (Rio de Janeiro), Aju Paraguassu (Salvador) and Aline Bispo (São Paulo). Several of them spoke passionately about their work and the deep connection between football and Brazilian identity.

Paraguassu, who designed the Salvador illustrations, likened the experience to “scoring a great goal at a packed Arena Fonte Nova,” describing the project as powerful, uplifting and driven by women’s creativity. Bispo, responsible for the São Paulo artworks, highlighted the importance of supporting women’s football and paid tribute to the city’s mosaic floors and ever-present football culture, noting that beneath São Paulo’s grey exterior lies “a lot of warmth and soul.”

Recife-based painter Galvão emphasised the overlap between football and her artistic themes of colour, diversity and rhythm, while Cristina said her Belo Horizonte illustrations were designed to tell a story of dreams fulfilled, particularly for girls aspiring to become professional players.

FIFA President Gianni Infantino described the tournament as a historic moment, noting that “Brazil lives and breathes football,” while national icon Marta said the country is ready to host the world with “pride, emotion and belief,” inspiring a new generation of heroes.

Following the brand launch and the opening of the tournament’s offices in Rio, attention now turns to the next major milestone: the announcement of the match schedule, which will reveal which games will be hosted by each of the eight Host Cities.

Meanwhile, multimedia assets featuring the Host City artworks are available for editorial use via the FIFA Digital Hub, and fans can register their interest in tickets through FIFA.com as the countdown to Brazil 2027 gathers momentum.

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Perennial Nigeria Falconets and two-time runners-up at the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup made their dominance count only once, edging Senegal 1–0 in the first leg of their third-round African qualifying fixture for this year’s finals in Poland.

Nigeria created a host of scoring opportunities but had just Kindness Ifeanyi’s 51st-minute header to show for their superiority, leaving the tie finely balanced ahead of the return leg in Dakar next Saturday.

Introduced after the break, Ifeanyi made an immediate impact, powering home a header from a corner kick delivered by defender Tumininu Adeshina to give the Falconets a deserved lead.

Nigeria’s preparations were briefly disrupted in the first half when leading striker Janet Akekoromowei was forced off through injury. Despite the setback, Shakirat Moshood and Taiwo Afolabi spearheaded a series of dangerous attacks that could have yielded more goals.

The Falconets controlled large spells of the match, pressing high and covering every blade of grass. Their first clear opening came in the 12th minute when Moshood skipped past two defenders, but her cross was blocked and cleared by the Senegalese backline.

Senegal responded in the 20th minute through Sokhna Nogaye, who took advantage of a brief defensive lapse, but Nigeria goalkeeper Christiana Uzoma reacted sharply to deny the visitors. The first caution of the game arrived in the 25th minute when Khady Thiandoume was booked for a reckless challenge on Akekoromowei.

Nigeria came close again on 30 minutes as Moshood fired a point-blank effort that was brilliantly saved by Senegal goalkeeper Adji Ndiaye. Five minutes later, a slick exchange between Moshood and Akekoromowei almost produced the opener before a last-ditch defensive clearance forced a corner.

After Ifeanyi’s breakthrough goal early in the second half, Nigeria continued to pile on the pressure. Ndiaye was called into action again in the 66th minute to deny Ifeanyi a second, while Moshood was twice thwarted from close range as Senegal struggled to contain Nigeria’s relentless tempo.

Adeshina nearly doubled the lead in the 76th minute when her in-swinging corner struck the crossbar, summing up Nigeria’s frustration in front of goal.

Despite settling for a narrow victory, the Falconets head to Dakar with an advantage as both sides prepare for another fierce contest, with the aggregate winner advancing to the final round of the qualification series for the FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup in Poland.

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