Nigeria's Flamingos beat Brazil 3-1 in the semi-final of the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup on Wednesday night. Awawu Bashiru scored twice in the last 20 minutes. They meet Japan in the final on Saturday 7 November, kick-off 7.30pm Lagos time, on Pitch 3 at the Mohammed VI Football Complex in Rabat.
Bashiru turns a goalless night into a rout
Nothing at half-time. Then Queen Joseph broke through in the 56th minute, Bashiru lobbed the second over the Brazilian goalkeeper in the 71st and added a third in the 80th, and by the time Brazil's Greise Kelly pulled one back in the 89th minute, the tie had long been decided and Nigeria were already counting down to Saturday. Japan await.
Bashiru is the detail to keep.
She came off the bench against Poland on the opening day, in a match Nigeria lost, and on the biggest night of the tournament she scored two.
It is also the first time Nigeria have beaten Brazil at this tournament. They drew 2-2 in Christchurch in 2008 and lost 1-0 in Amman in 2016.
Against Venezuela it took captain Azeezat Oduntan's penalty on 89 minutes.
Nigeria's road to the final
The run now includes the Brazil game and every scorer, and it extends the table in our semi-final preview.
| Date | Round | Opponent | Score | Pitch | Nigeria scorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 October | Group B | Poland | 1-2 L | Pitch 4 | Yusuf |
| 20 October | Group B | Puerto Rico | 2-0 W | Pitch 4 | Adegbuyi, Oscar |
| 23 October | Group B | DPR Korea | 3-1 W | Pitch 1 | Adegbuyi, Umejiaku, Yusuf |
| 29 October | Round of 16 | Mexico | 2-1 W | Pitch 2 | Umejiaku, Dunstan |
| 1 November | Quarter-final | Venezuela | 1-0 W | Pitch 4 | Oduntan (penalty) |
| 4 November | Semi-final | Brazil | 3-1 W | Pitch 3 | Joseph, Bashiru 2 |
Add the scores up and the Flamingos have scored 12 and conceded 5 in six matches. Take out the Poland defeat and the five wins read 11 for and 3 against. The side that lost on day one has kept two clean sheets since, against Puerto Rico and Venezuela, and has never let in more than one goal in any of its five wins, which is how a team survives a group where three sides finish on six points.
Eight players share the 12 goals. Umejiaku, Yusuf, Adegbuyi and Bashiru have two each, and Oscar, Dunstan, Oduntan and Joseph have one apiece. Japan cannot plan around one forward. That matters.
What it means for Nigerian football
Nigeria went one step past India 2022, where they took bronze by beating Germany in the third-place match. Premium Times and Vanguard both report that this is their first final in the competition, and the best earlier finish on record is that bronze.
Japan got there by beating the holders, DPR Korea, 4-1 on penalties after a 1-1 draw, according to FIFA. DPR Korea and Brazil meet for third place on Saturday at 4pm Lagos time on Pitch 2.
No post-match reaction from Akeem Busari had been published by the outlets we checked on Thursday morning. For the route behind this squad, read our report on the round of 16 win over Mexico.
This article was most recently revised and updated 20 seconds ago
