The Super Falcons of Nigeria started off their campaign at the Africa youth Championship with a resounding 6-0 thrashing of Mali in their first group game.
Arsenal forward Asisat Oshoala stole the headline by scoring four goals in the rout, but she was quick to point out that it wouldn’t have been possible without her teammates.
“This is just the first match and our approach was not to concede in the first 20 minutes. When we went to the dressing room, we came back stronger in the second half and did better. Basically it is not about Asisat Oshoala, rather the whole Nigerian team. I did not come with a target in mind to win the Most Valuable Player or the top scorer, rather to make my country (Nigeria) proud. And also to show the rest of Africa that we are still around and this is the only way to make that statement”, she said.
Former captain of the Nigeria Female team and now coach of the team Florence Omagbemi praised the forward for her performance especially her abilities to play in several roles for the good of the team.
“This is our first game and we are in the process of finding our feet. We are through with Mali and looking forward to Ghana. Our focus is to defend our trophy and we have just started” , she said in the post match conference.
“Before the match, there was no special talk to a particular player. The technical team spoke to the players collectively and passed on the message to them.
“Asisat Oshoala is a special player and can adjust to any position. She did that today and everyone saw the result.”
