Madugu hints at rotation after Nnadozie errors

Justine Madugu, coach of Nigeria's women's national football team, addressed goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie's performance after her team's quarter-final loss to Cameroon in the Women's Africa Women's Football Championship (WAFCON). Despite Nnadozie's errors, contributing to Nigeria's defeat, Madugu defended her goalkeeper, acknowledging that mistakes can be costly.

Nnadozie, who has been criticized following a challenging WAFCON campaign, has been faulted for her positioning, which some believe led to goals conceded by Nigeria. This was evident in Nigeria's 3-2 loss to Malawi, where the three goals were attributed to Nnadozie's positioning. However, Madugu emphasized that Nnadozie remains a valuable goalkeeper, both for the national team and her club, stating, "Anyone can make mistakes at any time.

These mistakes can be costly, as it has been for us today, but that’s not to say she’s a bad goalkeeper."

As the Falcons prepare for their crucial play-off against South Africa on Thursday, Madugu indicated that the technical staff would evaluate all available options before the match. The technical crew will assess what went wrong, what went well, and where the team may have faltered in the short time before the next game. Madugu acknowledged that exploring other players could be beneficial, stating, "There's nothing bad about exploring other players."

Nigeria's loss to Cameroon marked their worst-ever finish at the WAFCON, failing to reach the semi-finals for the first time in the championship's history. This result also meant the 10-time African champions missed out on one of Africa's four automatic qualification places for the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup in Brazil. The Falcons must now secure a win against South Africa in Casablanca on Thursday to advance to the FIFA inter-confederation play-offs, scheduled for November and December, where they will have another route to the World Cup.