Ahead of the round of 16 encounter against England scheduled for Monday, Ifeoma Onumonu, the formidable forward of Nigeria’s Super Falcons, has hinted at the potential underdog status that her team may take up with a triumph over their opponent.
Onumonu, while appearing on The Super Falcons Show, acknowledged that England’s superior rankings and pastes achievements they have garnered which give them an advantage.
She stated, ‘In this round-of-16 game, it will be surprising if they treat us as the underdogs. Based on the rankings and past performances, it’s inevitable that we would be considered the underdogs.’
However, she made a note of the fact that the recent performances of the Super Falcons afford her team a promising opportunity.
The Super Falcon forward said, ‘At the same time, I think with the recent successes, it will be a mistake for England to take us lightly, and I think they know that.’
‘I think when you look at our [Nigeria] recent performances, anyone who takes anyone lightly will be a mistake.’
‘There are no easy games in this World Cup, a lot of teams are really good. You have Brazil, who didn’t make it to the next round; you have Germany, who are ranked number two in the world; and then Canada, who didn’t make it because of us [Nigeria].’
‘I don’t think anyone is taking us lightly, and if they do, they are going to be in for a surprise because we are a good team,’ she said.
Lauren James, England’s superstar striker, stated in a previous interview that the Nigerian female team would undoubtedly be a formidable and challenging opponent to contend with.