Nigeria’s U-20 women’s national team, the Falconets, have secured qualification for the 2026 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup scheduled to be held in Poland.
It was, however, a nervy outing for the Falconets, who had to dig deep before overcoming Malawi in the final qualifying round.
The Nigerian side were pushed to the limit on Saturday as the Malawians claimed a 2-1 victory in the second leg — a result that was still not enough to stop the Falconets from reaching the mundial.
Holding a 2-0 advantage from the first leg, the Falconets endured a difficult evening as the hosts drew level on aggregate after racing to a 2-0 lead. However, a crucial 62nd-minute goal by Oscar Precious proved decisive for Nigeria.
Faith Chimzimu had scored in the ninth and 56th minutes to level the aggregate score at 2-2 before Precious restored Nigeria’s advantage.
The Falconets then held firm defensively to deny Malawi another goal until the final whistle.
Nigeria eventually sealed qualification for the World Cup with a 3-2 aggregate victory.
