By Saheed Afolabi
Dannaz Ladies’ resilient defender, Deborah Bakare, is looking forward to an exciting and action-packed 2024/2025 Nigeria Women Football League (NWFL) Premiership season for her side.
After suffering their first defeat of the season against Nasarawa Amazons, the Cedars bounced back strongly with a 2-0 victory over Confluence Queens at the Mobolaji Johnson Arena in Onikan.
Bakare, who has been a rock in defense, is eager to build on the team’s momentum and is optimistic about a successful season.
“I feel so much excited for getting our first win of the season and we hope to build on the momentum to drive out an impressive season,” Bakare told nigeriafootball.ng exclusively.
The versatile player emphasized that the team is not taking any of their away games lightly, stressing that they will approach every match with the aim of securing victories.
“Dannaz Ladies will put in their best this season and even try to win away matches,” she said.
Bakare, a hard-tackling defender, expressed confidence that with proper preparation and professionalism, Dannaz Ladies can secure a spot in the Super Six playoff at the end of the season.
“Our target remains qualifying for the Super Six, and we are ready to give our best to actualize the club’s set-out objectives,” she added.
The Cedars will take on Ekiti Queens in their next match on Wednesday, January 29, and Bakare will be key in ensuring the team’s continued success.
Samuel Ahmadu is a distinguished multimedia journalist and women's football expert with over 15 years of experience in the industry. On the back of domestic engagement since 2008, he began his international career journey at Goal.com in February 2014, where he served as an African women's football correspondent for nearly eight years. During his tenure at Goal.com, Samuel covered major events such as three Women's Africa Cup of Nations (2016, 2018, 2022) and the 2015 FIFA Women's World Cup in Canada plus 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. His work at Goal.com earned him widespread acclaim, particularly for his in-depth profiles of African football stars, notably Asisat Oshoala, whose rise he documented from her early years to her breakthrough at the FIFA U20 Women's World Cup in 2014. Prior to his role at Goal.com, Samuel freelanced for various print and broadcast media outlets in Nigeria, including Graphics Newspaper, Radio Nigeria, Grace FM, and Savid Newspaper. His extensive experience and expertise led to his appointment to the Nigeria Football Federation's Standing Committee on Women's Football Development from 2016 to 2018. Since February 2018, Samuel has been the Social Media Manager for Nigeria's women's national teams.In 2019, Samuel joined the Confederation of African Football (CAF) as a women's football content contributor and was promoted to Women's Football Editor in 2021. His contributions to women's football continued as he worked as a Media Consultant for Content Creation and Editorials at the 2022 CAF Women's Champions League. Currently, Samuel also serves as the spokesman for the Nigeria Women Football League, further solidifying his influence and dedication to the growth of women's football in Africa.
