National Teams
U17WWCQ: “Remontada is possible” — Algeria coach eyes comeback against Nigeria
By Monsurah Olatunji
Despite a heavy 4–0 defeat to Nigeria’s Flamingos in the first leg of the final qualifying round for the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in Ikenne, Algeria’s head coach, Abednour Mira, remains optimistic about his team’s chances of overturning the deficit.
The North Africans were outclassed in Saturday’s clash at the Remo Stars Stadium in Ikenne, where goals from Queen Joseph and others gave Nigeria a commanding advantage heading into the second leg.
However, Mira believes history could repeat itself when Algeria hosts the return leg on April 25.
Referencing their dramatic turnaround in the previous round—when they bounced back from a 2–1 loss in Gaborone to defeat Botswana 4–0 at home—Mira drew inspiration from one of football’s most iconic traits: the comeback, or remontada.
“The second leg is going to be better than this one,” Mira declared in his post-match press conference. “We can do a comeback like we did against Botswana. People are calling Real Madrid the king of a comeback — we can do it, too.”
He stressed that belief and mental strength would be key if Algeria is to pull off a shock result and qualify for their first-ever FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup.
“We have our own way of doing remontada because impossibility is nothing in football. We just have to keep the mentality right and stick to our game plan.”
Nigeria, on the other hand, are aiming for their seventh appearance at the tournament and will look to protect their advantage when they travel to North Africa later this week.
