FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup: Nigeria’s Flamingos edge Venezuela to reach semi-finals

Nigeria’s Flamingos reached the semi-finals of the FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup finals after Azeezatt Oduntan’s late penalty secured a 1-0 win over Venezuela on Sunday night.

The quarter-final was decided in the closing stages after Nigeria controlled much of the attacking play but struggled to find a way past Venezuela goalkeeper Valeria Rebanales. She made several important saves, including two in the first half, to keep the scores level.

Nigeria continued to apply pressure after the interval, with midfielder Favour Nkwocha receiving a caution as the Flamingos searched for an opening. Head Coach Hakeem Busari then made his first substitution of the match, sending on Precious Oscar in place of Oluwakemi Adegbuyi.

The decisive moment came in the 88th minute when the referee initially awarded Nigeria a penalty. The decision was then referred to the VAR monitor for review, but the original ruling was upheld.

Oduntan took responsibility from the spot and converted with one minute remaining, giving Nigeria a breakthrough that Venezuela could not answer.

The penalty had been won by Nigeria’s top scorer, Oluebube Umejiaku, whose challenge in the area created the opportunity for Oduntan to settle the contest.

The result sends the Flamingos into the last four, where they will face Brazil. Brazil booked their own semi-final place with a 2-1 victory over China in their quarter-final.