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Randy Waldrum leaves Brisbane for USA after Nigeria’s Women’s World Cup ouster
By Oyediji Oluwaseun Babatunde
Nigeria’s head coach Randy Waldrum has left the team hotel and traveled to his base, the United States of America (USA) a few hours after their Round of 16 ouster from the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia.
The Super Falcons bowed out of the tournament after a 4-2 loss to the Lionesses in Brisbane on Monday.
Promptnewsonline reported that less than 24 hours after his team’s elimination, Waldrum headed to Brisbane International Airport to catch the available flight back to his country (USA).
The report states that the coach left with all the seven US-born Super Falcons players and did not officially address the grieving players or the entire team before leaving the hotel in Brisbane on Tuesday.
Players who left with the coach include Abiodun Deborah (University of Pittsburgh), Ifeoma Onumonu (Gotham FC), Esther Okoronkwo (UDG Tenerife), and Michelle Alozie (Houston Dash).
Others are Toni Payne (Sevilla FC), Jennifer Echegini (University of Florida), and Yewande Balogun (Saint Etienne).
The was also gathered that players and backroom staff were still asleep when the coach currently the Head Coach of the University of Pittsburgh Panthers women’s soccer club left with the foreign players.
The rest of the team is still in Brisbane and expected to depart on Wednesday. The team is still having financial issues with the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) ahead of the Women’s World Cup with the global union for professional football players, FIFPRO issuing a statement to help resolve the issue.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Football Federation has dismissed as nothing more than a storm in a team cup, a statement issued by the world body of professional footballers, FIFPRO on Tuesday calling on the Federation to pay players of the Super Falcons what they are owed.
The Federation reiterated that it had an earlier agreement with the players on what they would earn at the FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, but world football governing body, FIFA came up with a new template that guaranteed more money for the players and which made players of all participating teams happier.
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