FALCONETS READY FOR ENGLAND AFTER THRASHING NEW CALEDONIA

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By: Muftau Fatimo

Ramotalahi Kareem, one of the Falconets’ hat-trick heroes and the Player of the Match in Nigeria’s 10-1 demolition of New Caledonia, says the team are prepared for their Round of 16 clash against England at the 2026 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Poland,

The Falconets bounced back strongly on Sunday after collecting just one point from their opening two group matches, recording a resounding 10-1 victory over New Caledonia in their final Group F fixture.

Kareem and Tosin Rafiu played key roles in the emphatic win, as Nigeria scored 10 goals to secure second place in Group F and book their place in the knockout stage.

Spain finished top of the group with a perfect record after defeating China 3-1. Despite the defeat, China progressed as one of the best third-placed teams and will face Italy in the Round of 16.

Moses Aduku’s Falconets dominated from the outset and took the lead when Rafiu weaved her way past three opponents to win a penalty, which Kareem calmly converted.

Headers from Rebecca Adegbemile and Janet Akekoromowei extended Nigeria’s advantage before Kareem added a fourth following another excellent move involving Rafiu.

After the restart, Kareem completed her hat-trick before Onajite David also bagged a treble of her own. Adegbemile completed her brace, while Rafiu scored a stunning effort from outside the box.

New Caledonia, however, had a consolation goal through Kourevi, who scored her first goal of the finals with a superb long-range strike.

“We hope to achieve great things now that we’ve got through the group stage. I’m really pleased with my hat-trick. My job is to score goals and helping the team today made me happy. We’re ready for the match against England. We’ll prepare as well as we possibly can for the Round of 16 against a strong side,” she said after the game.

Nigeria finished the group stage with four points from three matches, having previously lost 2-0 to Spain and drawn 0-0 with China PR.

The emphatic victory significantly improved the Falconets’ goal difference and secured their second-place finish in Group F

The Falconets will tackle Group E winners England in the Round of 16 on Thursday.