Falconets of Nigeria head coach Chris Danjuma is confident his team will have a successful outing at the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup, which will be held from this Wednesday to August 28 in Costa Rica.
Danjuma believes that his girls have the strength, the know-how and the right spirit to go far in the tournament, in which Nigeria reached the final in 2010 and 2014.
The Falconets arrived in the Costa Rican capital San Jose on Saturday morning after travelling through Istanbul (Turkey) and Bogota (Colombia).
“We are finally here, and we are happy to be here at the FIFA World Cup,” Danjuma said.
“The World Cup is always an interesting experience for the coaches and the players, and I am sure it is the same for other professionals who get to be involved.
“We took a long route to get here, having to play four different teams in the qualifying series. I can tell you that we are prepared to do Nigeria and Africa proud. It is not about being here to make up the numbers; it is about being here to make an impact.”
The two-time runners-up are based in the Intercontinental Hotel in San Jose, and already had two training sessions, on Saturday and Sunday.
Yesterday, the Falconets held a session at the San Rafael Stadium for one hour, and then utilised the same facility for two hours on Sunday morning.
The organisers have scheduled the team to train at the Alajuela Stadium today, and at the Stadio Piedades Santa Ana tomorrow.
The Falconets open their campaign against France at the Estadio Nacional in San Jose from 5pm Costa Rican time (12 midnight Nigerian time) on Thursday.
Nigeria’s other group stage matches are against Korea Republic, from 2pm Costa Rican time (9pm Nigerian time) on Sunday, and against Canada from 8pm Costa Rican time on August 17 (3am Nigerian time on August 18).
Both matches will be held at the Alejandro Morera Soto Stadium.
Africa’s other representatives Ghana are in Group D against defending champions Japan, The Netherlands and three-time champions United States of America.
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