A late goal from Flourish Sabastine secured a victory for Nigeria’s Falconets against the Korea Republic at the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Colombia early Monday morning.
In a match with few scoring opportunities, it was the Nigerian team that capitalized on their chance deep into stoppage time at the Estadio Metropolitano de Techo in Bogota.
Forward Mary Lucky Mkpa could have added a second goal, but her finishing lacked the necessary precision.
Despite the early promise by the Falconets, it was the Asians that came close to drawing the first blood on the quarter-hour, but Shukurat Oladipo got one foot to a teasing cross from the right.
Nigeria’s goalkeeper, Shukurat Bakare, almost gifted a goal in the 28th minute when she missed a pull-out, but the South Korean forward could only sky it.
At the other end, Mkpa had a chance of her own but slammed the ball a little too high after a brilliant pass from Rofiat Imuran.
Nigeria were again lucky just before halftime when Korea’s Myeyung rocked the crossbar from a 22-yard free-kick.
At halftime, Flourish Sabastine and Amina Bello both had their shots blocked inside the opposition box, while substitute Chiamaka Okwuchukwu came close with a promising run down the right but couldn’t capitalize.
Just when it seemed the match might end in a draw, Sabastine struck from the right wing, hitting the post and sending the ball into the back of the net for the decisive goal.
Next up for Chris Danjuma’s team is a clash against three-time champions Germany on Wednesday evening, following Germany’s victory over Venezuela in the other Group D match.
