FIFA honors Oshoala’s U-20 World Cup journey

FIFA has recognized Asisat Oshoala’s amazing performance at the 2014 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Canada. They called her seven goals one of the best individual performances of the tournament, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.

The world football governing body shared a feature on its website. They recalled how the Nigerian forward made her mark on the world stage at the tournament. Oshoala won both the Golden Boot and the Golden Ball after a series of impressive games.

Oshoala started the tournament slowly, scoring once in the group stage. But she hit her stride in the knockout rounds, netting two goals against New Zealand in the quarter-finals and four against DPR Korea in the semi-finals.

Nigeria lost 1-0 to Germany in the final. But Oshoala’s individual skills had a lasting impact on the tournament. Her seven goals put her fourth on the list of highest scorers in a single tournament edition, tied with Korea DPR’s Kim Un-Hwa. Christine Sinclair and Alexandra Popp hold the record with 10 goals each, scored in 2002 and 2010. Oshoala is still the only African player to win the Golden Boot in this tournament.

FIFA mentioned that the Canada 2014 campaign was a launchpad for Oshoala’s career. She won her first Women’s Africa Cup of Nations title with Nigeria two months later. Then she got her first call-up to the senior Women’s World Cup in Canada 2015, where she scored in a 3-3 draw with Sweden.

She further built her reputation at France 2019 with a stunning goal against the Republic of Korea. This helped Nigeria reach the World Cup knockout stage for the first time since 1999. Later, she became the first African to score in three different World Cup editions, following her goal against co-hosts Australia in 2023.

Unfortunately, she missed the chance for her fourth World Cup appearance after Nigeria failed to qualify for Brazil 2027. Now at 31, Oshoala is one of the most decorated African footballers ever. She has six African Women’s Footballer of The Year awards and four WAFCON titles.

Oshoala has played for Liverpool, Arsenal, Chinese side Dalian Quanjian, Barcelona, and Bay FC in the National Women’s Soccer League. Currently, she plays for Saudi Arabian club Al Hilal. She has scored 40 goals in 74 appearances for the Nigeria senior team.