‘It didn’t come as a surprise’ – Desire Oparanozie on family’s reaction to retirement

By Oyediji Oluwaseun Babatunde

Former Nigeria’s senior women’s national team forward, Desire Oparanozie says her retirement from football didn’t come as a surprise to her family.

The former Dijon captain called it time on her football career after the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia.

Retiring at the age of 29 came as a surprise to lots of football fans given the fact that women’s footballers play till the age of 35 to 40 years before hanging their boots as she admitted her retirement was planned with her family.

“It didn’t come as a surprise to my family,” Oparanozie told Brila FM.

“It was a long thought process. It wasn’t just an immediate decision or stuff like that. We’ve had a conversation a couple of years before now and we knew it was going to be this year. I mean my family knew that and I also knew that at the back of my mind.

“The only thing was that it happened three months earlier because we have always known that I am going to retire at 30.

“I think it’s planning. I’ve planned for it and it’s finally here and it is time to focus on other things.” She concluded.

Oparanozie started her national team career at the U-17 level where she featured at the 2008 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup.

She progressed to the next category (U-20) where she reached the final of the 2010 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup as well as a fourth-place finish at the 2012 edition of the U-20 World Cup.

With the Super Falcons, she won four Women’s African Cup of Nations (WAFCON) titles in 2010, 2014, 2016, and 2018 winning the top goalscorer prize at the 2014 edition with five goals and played at four FIFA Women’s World Cup.