Players and officials of Super Falcons of Nigeria have started arriving France ahead of the international friendly against the Les Bleues.
It is the second time both teams will engage in a friendly encounter – the first being a forgettable experience for the Falcons as they lost by eight goals in freezing weather inside Le Mans’ Stade Marie-Marvingt on 6th April 2018.
Only goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie, who plays her club football in France, and Mexico- based defender Osinachi Ohale, remain from that squad that was undone by, among other things, a hat-trick from Valérie Gauvin and an own goal by defender Faith Ikidi-Michael.
The defeat equalled the Falcons’ biggest-ever defeats – by Norway at the 1995 FIFA World Cup finals in Sweden and by Germany in a friendly in Leverkusen’s Bay Arena on 25th November 2010.
However, clashes at the FIFA World Cup finals have been much closer, with the Falcons losing by the odd goal against the Les Bleues in Germany in 2011, and by the same margin at the Roazhon Park when both sides clashed at the 2019 finals hosted by France.
The big game with the Les Bleues comes up only five weeks after the first of two friendly matches with Algeria’s Green Ladies in Nigeria (2-0 and 4-1 wins), and eight days after the Super Falcons learnt they would be playing Tunisia, Algeria and Botswana in the group phase at the 13th Women AFCON in Morocco next summer.
Saturday’s match will commence at 9.30pm France time, same time as in Nigeria
