Super Falcons striker Desire Oparanozie had said the Super Falcons of Nigeria must beat Canada in their opening group game of the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup to stand a chance of progressing in the tournament.
Nigeria is in Group B of the World Cup which will be held in Australia and New Zealand from July 20 to August 20.
The Super Falcons will have to battle with the co-hosts, Australia, the defending Olympic winners Canada, and the Republic of Ireland in the group stage.
After ending a seven-match losing run with three straight victories, Nigeria’s senior women’s national team is in good form heading into the 2023 World Cup.
Their first game in the tournament is against Canada on July 21 which coach Randy Waldrum and his ladies are expected to win to stand a chance of making it out of the group.
In an interview with SuperSports, Desire Oparanozie maintained her belief that the Super Falcons will do well enough to advance from their difficult group and to the next round of the World Cup.
“Canada is a top team and the good thing is we have played them a couple of times and we know them very well,” she said.
“All the time that we have played against them we’ve had something positive to go home with irrespective of the result. Having them in our group is not bad, it just means we are going to put in more work and devise a means to come out on top this time because the last time we were in the same group with them at a World Cup they came out on top.
“This time we will have to change that and we have the information needed to beat them and we are playing them in our first which is very vital for us if we are going to get to the next round.”
