Nigeria’s Falconets today face Colombia in the quarter-finals of the 2026 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Łódź, Poland with a semi-final place and a chance to end a 12-year wait to reach the last four on the line.
The two-time runners-up booked their quarter-final ticket after a convincing 3-0 victory against England on Thursday, with Tosin Rafiu, Janet Akekoromowei and Mary Mamudu finding the back of the net.
Coach Moses Aduku has advised his players against complacency after the stunning win over England. “It would be foolish of us to keep obsessing about the triumph over England.
That match is gone and we cut short our jubilation right after in the dressing room to focus on the encounter with Colombia,” Aduku said.
The coach admitted the brilliance of the South American squad, who knocked out hosts Poland 1-0 in their Round of 16 clash. “The Colombians eliminated the host country and they won’t be a pushover for us,” he said.
In this fixture history favours Nigeria. The Falconets defeated Colombia 1-0 in the semi-finals in Germany in the 2010 edition by a second-minute goal by Ebere Orji, a victory that sent Nigeria to their first-ever FIFA women’s football final.
Goalkeeper and skipper Christiana Uzoma is likely to play a major part after her impressive outing against England where she made six crucial saves including a penalty save.
“There is a significant opportunity,” Aduku said. “We need to bring our best foot forward, play every ball for the win. “The girls know this is a golden chance for them to write their names in gold in Nigerian football,” he said.
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The NFF Acting General Secretary, Emmanuel Ikpeme, has charged the team to keep their eyes on the ball as the campaign draws to a close.
“Of course, tournaments get tougher in the final stages. “But good teams rise up when the going gets tough,” Ikpeme remarked.
Italy and Spain have already sealed their berths in the semi-finals and the two European sides will face on Wednesday.
The second semi-final will see the winners of Nigeria’s game with Colombia and the North Korea versus Canada fixture go head to head.
The encounter starts at 2:00pm West African Time at the Stadion Miejski ŁKS in Łódź.
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