Nigeria Lose Opening Fixture at FIFA U20 World Cup: “We Gave It Our Best”
- Nigeria's Flying Eagles suffered a 1-0 defeat to Norway in their opening match of the 2025 FIFA U20 World Cup
- The West African powerhouse were beaten, despite dominating possession and creating several scoring opportunities
- Captain of the side, Daniel Bameyi, has explained that the team gave it their all, but the goal would not just come
Nigeria's Flying Eagles have started the 2025 FIFA U20 World Cup on a losing note as they were handed a 1-0 defeat by Norway in their opening match.
Despite dominating play from start to finish and creating several chances, the Nigerian side failed to find the back of the net in the encounter.
The only goal of the game came in the 9th minute after the European side were awarded a controversial penalty, with Rosmus Holten making no mistake from the spot.
Source: Getty Images
Defender Daniel Bameyi conceded a penalty after a reckless challenge inside the box, and the referee's decision was confirmed by the VAR.
The desperate Flying Eagles made efforts to put themselves back in the game, but they were denied penalties on two occasions in the second half.
Kparobo Arierhi saw his left-footed shot drift just wide in the 47th minute, even though he had beaten the goalkeeper with his effort.
Tahir Maigana also hit the woodwork in the 63rd minute, even as the two-time silver medallists launched several attacks against their opponents, per NFF.
Nigeria thought they had equalised in the 71st minute, but Nasiru Salihu’s rising shot from the right rose a little too high.
With seven minutes left on the clock, Maigana again powered a shot from outside the area, but his effort went wide.
After the game, the captain of the side, Daniel Bameyi, stated that the team tried everything possible to get results from the game.
He said in viral footage:
"It’s a tough loss, not the result we were expecting. We gave it our best, created chances but couldn’t convert.
"Our focus now shifts to the next game against Saudi Arabia — we’ll learn from our mistakes and come.
The Flying Eagles will take on Saudi Arabia in their second match of the competition on Thursday.
They take on Colombia on October 6 in their third match of the preliminary rounds, as per Yahoo.
How Nigeria qualified
They secured qualification after reaching the semi-finals of the 2025 U20 Africa Cup of Nations after beating Senegal in the quarter-final via a penalty shootout.
Source: Getty Images
The Eagles went on to lose the semis to eventual winners South Africa, but they claimed the bronze after beating Egypt in the third-place playoff.
Nigeria are seeking their first FIFA U-20 World Cup title after reaching the final in both 1989 and 2005.
Seyi Makinde rewards Falconets
Legit.ng earlier reported that Nigeria recorded an emphatic 4-0 win in the 2026 FIFA U20 Women's World Cup qualifiers at the Lekan Salami Stadium in Ibadan, Oyo State, on Saturday evening, September 27.
The Falconets took the lead in the 13th minute through Precious Oscar after connecting to Janet Akekoromowei's pass.
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Source: Legit.ng
