Falconets Coach Promises Better Performance After Loss to Spain

Nigeria’s Falconets lost 2-0 to Spain in their first Group F match at the 2026 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup. Head coach Moses Aduku said his team did not show up for the game.

The 2022 champions started their campaign against the seven-time African champions, but Nigeria struggled to make an impact. Spain controlled the match and took all three points.

Spain opened the scoring with a goal from Marisa Garcia. She finished well after Noe Bejarano created space in the Nigerian defense.

In the second half, Nigeria faced a bigger challenge when Spain brought on Alba Cerrato from the bench.

Cerrato quickly made her mark. In just seven minutes, she scored with a neat left-footed shot to make it 2-0, putting the game out of Nigeria’s reach.

This goal was special for Cerrato. She was part of the Spain team that finished as runners-up at the 2024 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in the Dominican Republic.

Throughout the match, Nigeria struggled to create chances. Their best opportunity came seven minutes before full time.

Precious Oscar had a chance from 10 yards but missed narrowly. The Falconets could not find a way back into the game.

Spain coach David Aznar praised his players for handling what he expected to be a tough match against Nigeria.

"We are very pleased. Winning the first match at a tournament of this level is always positive. It means we can control our destiny in the next games. It was a very difficult match. We knew Nigeria would be tough because they have great physical strength. We made a huge effort and deserved to win," he said.

For Nigeria, Aduku expressed his disappointment with the team's performance but was hopeful that the defeat would not end their campaign.

"We did not come to the party today. We did not play. But we have two more games to play, and we will get it right. I am confident we will go through to the knockout rounds. We did not play today," he said.

"My girls tried their best, but that’s football. We’ll get it right in the next game."

This loss puts pressure on the Falconets in their remaining Group F matches. But Aduku believes Nigeria can bounce back and move on to the knockout stages.

The Nigerian team must now focus on their next two matches against China and New Caledonia. The coach insists they can still turn things around.

The challenge for the Falconets is to forget about the poor performance against Spain and show the response Aduku knows they can give.