Nigeria’s female national team, Super Falcons’ head coach, Justin Madugu has promised that he will come out with a different strategy for his squad’s forthcoming international friendly versus Portugal on June the 23rd.
Sports247 reports that the clash with Portugal is scheduled to take place in the Iberian country’s capital, Lisbon, ahead of which Madugu is already making plans and the coach believes he will come up with the right strategy to defeat his team’s hosts.
Read Also: BREAKTHROUGH MOMENT FOR NIGERIAN ATHLETES AS HOME-BASED STARS GEAR UP FOR MOSCOW SHOWDOWN__
It would be a massive result should that happen, as the Falcons lost their last European friendly away to France in November 2024, after falling 1-0 to another Iberian side, Spain earlier during the 2024 Olympic Games, which was sandwiched by defeats they suffered against Japan and Brazil.
However, the Falcons will head to Lisbon on the strength of their recent 2-0 defeat of Cameroon, gained with an overwhelming display this past Tuesday at MKO Abiola Sports Complex in Abeokuta, which Madugu said was made possible through dint of hard work from his players.
Madugu, who also has an eye on the July 5 kick-off date for this year’s African Women Cup of Nations in Morocco, retorted, “We have a lot of games to play ahead of us.
We will face each game based on the opposition, and we will try out different strategies to see which one fits our team better.”
He also took an analytical look at the victory over Cameroon, which many critics dubbed as a stroll in the park for his squad, but Madugu parried any attempt to downplay what he insists was a great show of desire, determination and tactical discipline by his players.
The soft-spoken gaffer added, “It was a good game, and the girls tried to put in a lot of what we have been working on in training. That accounted for what was seen on the field of play.
However, we are not yet a finished product, and it’s still work in progress. Even at the competition, work must continue until the end of the competition.”
He concluded by admitting that the Falcons have to work harder in order to meet up with the expectations of their fans and to always justify their rating as Nigeria’s most successful national team, in terms of honours won for the country.
“We are not unmindful of the expectations of Nigerians. The Super Falcons is one of the most successful teams … if not the most successful … as far as Nigeria is concerned at the national team level.
So, there are high expectations each time we go out to play,” Madugu acknowledged.
