ALTHOUGH the Super Falcons of Nigeria are favourites to retain their title at the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco starting this month, goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie has promised that the team will not allow arrogance to derail their ambitions.
The Super Falcons won a record-extending 10th WAFCON title in Morocco in 2024, beating the hosts in the final after coming from 2-0 down to win 3-2.
Nnadozie, regarded as one of the best women’s goalkeepers in the world, and a back-to-back African Goalkeeper of the Year, said the champions are looking at taking it one match at a time as they compete in Group C against Egypt, Zambia and newcomers Malawi at the competition scheduled for July 26 to August 16.
“We will take it one match at a time because we cannot afford to stumble at any stage as a result of overconfidence,” the Brighton star told thenff.com.
“We will be focused squarely on the double targets of FIFA World Cup ticket and retaining the trophy.
“It is interesting to have more teams at the finals (16 now, up from 12). That will make the tournament more competitive, but we are calm and focused regardless of the number of teams in the finals.”
Nnadozie dismissed the notion that some groups are stronger than others in the three-week, 16-nation finals that will see all matches played in Rabat and Casablanca.
“I don’t share the belief that any group is tougher than the others,” she noted.
“Honestly, right now in Africa, there are no longer minnows. There will be a lot of surprises in this tournament as the so-called small teams will be keen to prove they are no push-overs, so all teams deserve respect and must be taken seriously.
“For us, we know what we are going for: the Cup and the World Cup ticket. It will not be easy but we are the Super Falcons of Nigeria!”
