Nigeria’s usual mistakes condemn it to defeat against Spain

Nigeria needed only five more minutes to take a point, or even three, from their meeting with world champions Spain. But poor shooting and a moment of defensive disengagement condemned them to a second consecutive Olympic defeat, and stared at the prospect of a third early exit in four Games.

Goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie was both hero and villain. She made an excellent save from close range but let Alexia Putella’s free-kick go over her due to poor positioning.

Following the 1-0 loss to Brazil, Randy Waldrum made two changes to his starting lineup for the clash against the world’s top-ranked team. Star striker Asisat Oshoala, who did not play against Brazil, was reinstated into the lineup along with Esther Okoronkwo.

Still, the shine was on Deborah Abiodun, captain Rasheedat Ajibade and, as usual, Nnadozie for most of the match, until his final mistake.

Same mistakes, different days

Waldrum focused on two key elements for his players heading into this tournament: taking advantage of opportunities when they come their way and staying focused throughout the 90 minutes.

The American strategy was to give up possession and play on the counterattack.

“We’re playing against the world champions, Brazil and Japan,” he told ESPN before the tournament. “All three teams are very good with ball possession and with their attacking moves.”

“We’re going to have to be very disciplined defensively and a lot of our play will have to come from the counterattack because we haven’t had the time together that those teams have to really develop a game pattern where we have confidence in keeping the ball against them.”

For it to work, Waldrum said his players would have to be efficient with their limited opportunities.

“We need to focus on that and work a bit more on our counter-attack, be a bit more clinical and efficient around goal. I understand a lot of people have been saying we’re wasting chances, that we need goalscorers and things like that, and I understand that. But you know that at least if you can keep a clean sheet you’ll always have a chance,” he added.

To be fair, the team has been pretty good at keeping opponents at bay. Conceding just one goal against Brazil and Spain is progress, especially given the organised way they went about it.

Its failure has been on the efficiency front.

Just like against Brazil, they created multiple counterattacking opportunities to tie and even win the match.

Ajibade received the pass from the returning Oshoala but lost control, handled the ball hard and tripped at a critical moment. Chinwendu Ihezuo, who came on for Oshoala, had his own chance in the 90th minute, coming one-on-one with the goalkeeper and firing the ball straight at Cata Coll. Okoronkwo and Oshoala also had chances, but neither were converted.

“We had three or four good chances,” Waldrum said after the match. “Unfortunately, we didn’t take advantage of them. We had one in the first half, a breakaway, and Asisat and Rash missed those chances. Unfortunately, the Spaniards took theirs.”

Waldrum must be wondering what else he needs to do to get his charges to score goals.

Asisat returns but cannot save Nigeria

Many were perplexed by Waldrum’s decision to leave Oshoala out of the starting lineup against Brazil and not give him any minutes.

He responded by reinstating her in the team, but it didn’t change much. The Bay FC forward did have an impact on the match at one point, when her visionary pass over the goal found Ajibade in space and in front of goal, but it was to be.

Oshoala herself got into a good position later in the first half, but was unable to finish. In the second half, her clever pass again found Ajibade, who fired over the goal from inside the box. She was eventually assisted by Ihezuo, and Waldrum ended up bringing on her entire attacking squad, with Ify Onumonu, Ihezuo and Uchenna Kanu all coming into the game.

The big players step up when things get tough. The Super Falcons have little chance of advancing to the next round if they manage to win against Japan in their final group match. As the star player and leader of the team, Oshoala will have to lead the Falcons by the belt and carry them if necessary.

Abiodun appears again

One player who continues to deliver match after match is Deborah Abiodun. The youngster was impressive against Brazil, but against the world champions, she was imperious.

Abiodun channelled his inner Gandalf – they shall not pass – time and time again, with his excellent reading of the game, quick thinking and impeccable execution in making interceptions, tackles and stealing the ball from more experienced players.

If there is one criticism that can be levelled at the Pitts youngster, it would be that her passing range could be better. Waldrum will be very pleased with her performance on the day, and the Super Falcons can be confident of a bright future in midfield, especially with the return of Halimatu Ayinde, who was forced to withdraw from the Games due to a last-minute injury.

Nnadozie stands out but stains his notebook

Few players have been as influential for the Super Falcons in recent years as Chiamaka Nnadozie.

Against Spain, he was back in his element, pulling a rabbit out of his seemingly bottomless hat.

As time ran out in the first half, Putella broke away from the Nigeria defence to collect a direct cross inside the six-yard box, guiding it with a gentle touch towards goal.

Any other goalkeeper would have gone in, but Nnadozie was not to be outdone and showed razor-sharp reflexes to clear the ball with his hand and curl it in for the corner. It was a great save.

However, Nnadozie’s mistake later proved costly.

As Spain was preparing for a free kick in the left channel, she stepped off her line and completely misread the flight of the ball, allowing it to sail over her and into the net.

It wasn’t the kind of effort that would normally beat her, which again echoed Waldrum’s plea to remain focused for the full 90 minutes.

It’s a lesson the Super Falcons will have to learn and absorb. Top teams only need one mistake to be punished.

“We lost to two of the best teams in the world,” Waldrum concluded. “Spain is the best team in the world and Brazil is in the top ten.”

“We have shown that we could have taken something from those games. It shows that we can play against anyone in the world.”