Nigeria cruise into the last 16
Nigeria thumped New Caledonia 10-1 to finish second in the group
Ramotalahi Kareem bagged a hat-trick and was named the Visa Player of the Match
Nigeria’s No8 and their head coach spoke to FIFA about the prospect of facing England in the last 16
Nigeria signed off on their FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup Poland 2026™ group-stage campaign in record-breaking fashion. The Falconets demolished New Caledonia 10-1, grabbing the game by the scruff of the neck from the word go and easily booking their place in the last 16, where England lie in wait.
Moses Aduku’s side drew first blood inside the opening few minutes with Ramotalahi Kareem converting a penalty and that set the tone for a dazzling performance.
Nigeria continued to probe and press and soon stretched their advantage, with Kareem completing her hat-trick in the second half before substitute Winner Onajite David followed suit, netting three times in quick succession.
New Caledonia did at least manage to find a moment of joy. Joceline Kourevi scored her side’s first goal of the tournament with a sumptuous long-range strike, making the final score 10-1.
“My job is to score goals and help the team, and I’m over the moon to have done that today,” Kareem told FIFA after the match. “I’m delighted with my hat-trick. Now we’re hoping to make a real impact after getting out of the group stage.”
The mouthwatering last-16 clash with England, however, will be a completely different kettle of fish. “We’re ready for the England game. We’ll prepare as well as we possibly can to take on a strong side,” Kareem added.
Aduku was also pleased with the team’s progress into the next round, but made no bones about the fact that there is still room for improvement: “We’re really happy with the goals we scored today. We wanted to get through to the last 16, and we’ve shown that we can do it. We’ve shipped a few too many goals in this tournament so far, so we’ll be looking to shore things up at the back.”
England now stand in Nigeria’s way on the road to the title. “It’s going to be a tough test,” the coach concluded. “If you want to be crowned champions, you’ve got to win every game. We’re ready for the challenge.”