Rinsola Babajide stars as Nigeria beat Egypt 6-2 to reach WAFCON quarter-finals

Rinsola Babajide marked her first start of the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations with a Player of the Match performance as Nigeria overcame Egypt 6-2 to secure a place in the quarter-finals.

The AS Roma winger was selected by head coach Justine Madugu for the Super Falcons’ final Group C fixture on Wednesday night and made a decisive contribution to a memorable victory.

Babajide used her pace, close control and intelligent movement to cause Egypt constant problems. Her display helped Nigeria recover from an uncertain start to the tournament and finish second in the group on six points.

After receiving the Player of the Match award, Babajide expressed her happiness in a heartfelt message on social media.

Her influence was apparent from the opening stages, as she repeatedly forced Egypt’s defence to retreat and created space for Nigeria’s attackers. She produced her first key contribution in first-half stoppage time, delivering a carefully weighted pass for Gift Monday, who finished calmly to put Nigeria 2-0 ahead in the 44th minute.

Egypt pulled a goal back before the interval, but Babajide quickly made her presence felt again after the restart. In the 57th minute, she created another opening and supplied substitute Uchenna Kanu, who restored Nigeria’s two-goal advantage by making it 3-1.

Babajide continued to attack Egypt’s defenders for the remainder of the match, driving forward whenever she received possession and helping Nigeria maintain control as they completed an emphatic win.

The result represented a strong response from the Super Falcons after they began their Group C campaign with a disappointing 3-2 defeat by Malawi, who were appearing at the tournament for the first time.

Nigeria then recovered with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Zambia before producing their most convincing performance of the group stage against Egypt.

Malawi finished top of Group C on six points, with Nigeria second on the same total. Zambia also ended with six points but failed to progress. Head-to-head results and goal difference were used to separate the teams that finished level, while goals scored against bottom-placed Egypt were excluded from the calculations.

Nigeria will face long-standing rivals Cameroon in the quarter-finals in Casablanca.

Babajide’s outstanding performance has strengthened her claim to retain her place in Madugu’s starting XI as the Super Falcons continue their pursuit of another Women’s Africa Cup of Nations title.