A late penalty from Azeezat Oduntan earned Nigeria’s Flamingos a hardfought 1-0 win over Venezuela in the quarterfinal of the FIFA U-17 women’s World Cup in Morocco, completesports.com reports.
This is the second time in four years the Flamingos will reach the semifinals after finishing third and winning bronze at the 2022 edition in India.
It was a tight, tactical battle between two teams who had both pulled off upsets in the Round of 16.
While Venezuela came into the game after eliminating reigning European champions Germany, the Flamingos defeated knocked out Mexico 2-1.
The Flamingos dominated possession and created the better chances but were frustrated by a resilient Venezuelan defence led by captain Valeria Rebanales.
The deadlock was finally broken as the Flamingos won a penalty which Oduntan and converted from the spot in the 89th minute to take a dramatic 1-0 lead.
Also Read: 2026 U-17 WWC: Busari Cautions Flamingos Against Complacency Ahead Of Venezuela Clash
Venezuela pushed hard for an equalizer in stoppage time, but Coach Bankole Olowookere’s girls held on resolutely to secure a famous victory.
The Flamingos’ journey has been one of resilience. They opened their campaign with a 2-1 defeat to Poland before recording victories against Puerto Rico (2-0) and defending champions North Korea (3-1) in the group stage and a 2-1 win over Mexico in the round of 16.
The coach Akeem Busari side will now face Brazil in the semi-final on Wednesday, November 4, 2026. Brazil booked their spot after coming from behind to beat China 2-1, with Helena Sampaio scoring twice in the 47th and 87th minute.
MATCH STATISTICS
Nigeria 1-0 Venezuela
Goal Scorer
Nigeria : Azeezat Oduntan (89th min, pen)
NIGERIA LINEUP
1. Jane Ijirigho
3. Azeezat Oduntan (C)
5. Ohunene Sunday
13. Esther Stephen
19. Kanyinsola Yusuf
8. Mary Dunstan
10. Favour Nkwocha
12. Tosin Rafiu
7. Queen Joseph
14. Oluwakemi Adegbuyi
17. Oluebube Umejiaku
SUBSTITUTIONS
Precious Oscar (Oluwakemi Adegbuyi, 57 min)
HEAD COACH: Akeem Busari
VENEZUELA LINEUP
12. Valeria Rebanales
3. Karla Alfonzo
4. Dariana Medina
6. Abril Alejo
15. Antonella Carmona
5. Migleydys Bolsegui
7. Juneski Flores
8. Astrid GRANADILLO Granadillo
14. Ariana Ojeda
9. Diana Bravo
10. Andrea Suarez
SUBSTITUTIONS
Mariangeles Avila (Antonella Carmona, 90+1 min)
Natalia Bermudez(Ariana Ojeda, 67 min)
Orliany Duran (Diana Bravo, 67 min)
Anabella FIGUEREDO (Andrea Suarez, 81 min)
HEAD COACH: Dayana Frias
By James Agberebi
