2025 Fifa U17 Women's World Cup: Five observations from Flamingos' 4-0 victory over Samoa

Nigeria cruised to a commanding 4-0 win over Samoa in their final Group D fixture at the FIFA U17 Women's World Cup in Morocco.

A brace from Queen Joseph, along with goals from Rasheedat Moshood and Azeezat Oduntan, sealed the emphatic victory for the Flamingos.

Allnigeriasoccer.com presents five observations from the match.

Olowookere makes three changes to the lineup

Flamingos head coach Bankole Olowookere made three adjustments to his starting lineup following the 1–0 defeat to France in their second Group D match.

The trio of Abubakar Memunat, Olarenwaju Kaosarat, and Boniface Elizabeth, who were partly at fault for the goal conceded against France, were dropped from the starting XI.

In their place, Olowookere handed starts to Yahaya Mariam, Terlumun Nguemo, and Echefu Sylvia. The changes paid off, with Echefu notably making a crucial save in the second half to deny Samoa a consolation goal.

AE Grace shines despite Samoa's defeat

Despite the heavy loss, Samoa’s goalkeeper AE Grace delivered a standout performance between the posts, preventing the scoreline from becoming even more lopsided.

Grace pulled off a string of superb saves, notably denying Queen Joseph a first-half hat-trick with a reflex stop from close range.

She also produced a brilliant save to deny Rasheedat Moshood from the penalty spot early in the second half.

Abubakar Memunat suffers late injury

Abubakar Memunat, who started the match on the bench, picked up an injury in the closing stages after coming on as a second-half substitute.

The Nigerian number 10 was introduced to help the Flamingos manage the game, but her appearance was cut short when she suffered an injury late in the match, forcing  Olowookere  to replace her with Nkwocha Ngomma.

Queen Joseph denied a hat-trick

Queen Joseph continued her fine form, netting a first-half brace to put Nigeria firmly in control before halftime.

However, despite multiple chances to complete her hat-trick, the number 12 couldn’t find the back of the net again.

Her efforts were frustrated by a combination of missed opportunities and a string of brilliant saves from Samoa goalkeeper AE Grace.

Nigeria advance to knockout stage

The Flamingos sealed their place in the knockout phase of the FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup after a convincing victory over Samoa on Saturday.

Nigeria had been on the brink of elimination following back-to-back defeats to Canada and France in their opening Group D fixtures.

However,  Olowookere's side bounced back strongly, securing progression as one of the best third-placed teams.

Adeyemi Adewale

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