Flamingos bounce back with Puerto Rico win at U-17 Women’s World Cup

Nigeria’s Flamingos revived their 2026 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup campaign with a 2-0 victory over debutants Puerto Rico in their second Group B match in Morocco on Tuesday.

The result came after Nigeria opened the tournament with a 2-1 defeat by Poland, leaving them needing a positive response to keep their hopes of progressing alive.

Oluwakemi Adegbuyi put the Flamingos ahead in the 25th minute, but Nigeria were unable to build on their advantage despite creating further opportunities before half-time.

Puerto Rico continued to compete strongly after the interval, with Nigeria forced to withstand a determined challenge before substitute Precious Oscar settled the contest by scoring in the 93rd minute.

Head coach Akeem Busari said the result was particularly significant because Puerto Rico understood the importance of the fixture.

“It was a strong win because Puerto Rico knew it was a game that would decide their fate so it was a very tough game for both sides,” Busari said.

“We were unable to convert our chances in the first half, fortunately we got the second goal towards the tail end of the second half but it was a very rough game, they are not pushing overs.”

Busari also praised the way his players responded to the defeat by Poland, saying the team’s preparation had focused on restoring their confidence.

“As an handler when you are down you look at it and think how so you comeback, it’s all about psyching and these are young players so all they need is counselling and what to do and today they were exceptional, they were more calm than the Poland game.”

The victory moved the Flamingos into their final Group B fixture with renewed momentum. Their next opponents will be group leaders North Korea, who secured qualification for the round of 16 earlier on Tuesday after beating Poland 6-1.

North Korea have already confirmed their place in the knockout stage, while Nigeria will face them on Friday, October 23.

The Flamingos will therefore finish the group stage against the side currently at the top of Group B, with the Puerto Rico victory providing a much-needed response to their opening-day loss.