Super Falcons coach reacts to Malawi loss

Super Falcons head coach Justin Madugu has called Nigeria’s unexpected 3-2 loss to Malawi a wake-up call. He believes that after such a defeat, people will naturally question his team selection and player positions, according to PUNCH Sports Extra.

In his post-match press conference, Madugu took the blame for this surprising loss in WAFCON history. But he disagreed with claims that putting players in positions they don’t usually play led to the defeat. A key discussion point was his choice to play Michelle Alozie as a left-back. This decision faced criticism from fans and analysts. The coach insisted that this choice was not the reason Nigeria struggled defensively.

“When things like this happen, everybody has their opinion. Everybody is entitled to say whatever they say,” Madugu told reporters.

“If we had won, the comments people would be making would not be the same.”

Madugu highlighted past tournaments where similar decisions worked out well. He recalled Ashleigh Plumptre playing left-back in the last edition of the tournament, even though it was not her usual position.

“When we played the last edition, and Ashleigh played at left full-back, she wasn’t a left full-back, but she did very well, and everybody appreciated her performances,” he said.

“We had some challenges in defence, and I think Michelle deserves to be commended because she gave everything and played very well. The mistake didn’t come from her position. It’s not her involvement in that area that caused the goals we conceded. She’s a good defender, and if we didn’t believe she could play there, we wouldn’t have selected her.”

Even with his choices, Madugu admitted that the technical crew must take responsibility for the loss.

“There will always be criticism when things go wrong. We accept those comments, and we accept responsibility for what happened. We’ll go back, analyse our mistakes and work to correct them,” he said.

“It’s a wake-up call for all of us. We know the importance of this tournament, and we’re not taking anything for granted.”

The coach also dismissed the idea that Nigeria underestimated Malawi. Instead, he praised the Scorchers for their growth in women’s football. He noted their regular play in COSAFA competitions has boosted their performance.

“We never took them for granted. We’ve been following their progress and knew they were a good side,” he said.

“They prepared very well, and playing regularly within the COSAFA region has helped improve teams from that part of Africa. Any team that qualifies for the WAFCON deserves respect. Malawi played well, earned the result and deserved the victory.”

Now Nigeria needs to regroup fast. They have an important Group C match against Zambia coming up. The defending champions want to bounce back and keep their chances of winning the WAFCON title alive.