Flamingos Overcome Venezuela to Book U17 World Cup Semi-Final Ticket Against Brazil

Oru Leonard 

Nigeria’s U17 women’s national team, the Flamingos, have advanced to the semi-finals of the FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup after edging Venezuela 1-0 in a tense quarter-final encounter on Sunday night.

A dramatic 89th-minute penalty converted by Azeezatt Oduntan proved decisive, sending the Nigerian girls into the last four of the competition.

The Flamingos dominated large portions of the encounter, creating several scoring opportunities but were repeatedly denied by Venezuela’s impressive goalkeeper, Valeria Rebanales, who produced crucial saves to keep her side in contention.

Nigeria maintained their attacking pressure throughout the first half, although they struggled to find the breakthrough against a resilient Venezuelan defence.

Head Coach Hakeem Busari made a tactical adjustment during the encounter, bringing on Precious Oscar for Oluwakemi Adegbuyi as the Flamingos intensified their search for a goal.

The defining moment arrived towards the closing stages when top scorer Oluebube Umejiaku won a penalty for Nigeria in the 88th minute.

Although the referee initially awarded the spot kick, the decision was subsequently reviewed on the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) monitor before being upheld.

Oduntan took responsibility and calmly converted the penalty in the 89th minute to hand Nigeria a crucial victory and spark celebrations among the Nigerian contingent.

The hard-fought triumph guarantees the Flamingos a place in the semi-finals, where they will face Brazil for a place in the final.

Brazil booked their semi-final berth with a 2-1 victory over China in their corresponding quarter-final fixture.

Nigeria will now turn their attention to the Brazilian challenge as they continue their quest for the FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup title.