Asisat Oshoala Scores Four As Super Falcons Win Festival Women’s Cup

Barcelona forward, Asisat Oshoala, scored four of the nine goals with which the Nigeria’s female senior national football team, Super Falcons used to demolish Equitorial Guinea 9-0, to comfortably win the Festival Women’s Cup 2021 in Antalya, Turkey.

Falcons, Equatorial Guinea, Uzbekistan and CSKA Moscow Ladies participated in the competition, with the Nigeria’s side finishing as champions with maximum nine points from three matches, scoring 11 goals and conceding none.

Glory Ogbonna opened the scoring for the nine-time African champions in the ninth minute before captain Oshoala scored two goals from the spot in the 12th and 13th minutes, and then added a third in the 26th minute.

Uchenna Kalu made it 5-0 in the 36th minute, while Eibar forward Charity Adule scored the sixth goal with a fine header three minutes later.

The hardworking Toni Payne’s 43rd minute thunderous strike, after shielding off two of her opponents, ensured that the Falcons took a seven-goal advantage into the half time break.

Falcons coach Randy Waldrum brought on Gift Monday, Ramat Abdulkareem, Esther Sunday and Maryam Ibrahim for Chiwendu Ihezuo, Chidinma Okeke, Payne and Kalu respectively, ensuring all the 23 players for the tournament had a taste of action.

The Nigerians, however, took their foot off the pedal in the second half but still scored two goals to confine Equatorial Guinea, two-time African champions, to a humiliating defeat.

Substitute Gift, who plays for Robo FC in the domestic league, scored the eighth goal in the 69th minute, before Oshoala grabbed her fourth of the game in the 85th minute to cap an emphatic win for the African champions.

Two minutes later Equatoguinean defender Gina was given the marching orders after a harsh tackle on the rampaging Ramat Abdulkareem on the left flank.

With the result, the Falcons became the first African team to win the tournament, following three straight wins.

Waldrum’s side defeated CSKA Moscow Ladies 1-0 in their opening game of the tournament before beating Uzbekistan by the same margin in their second encounter.

Oshoala attributed the performance to the hard work of the players.

“As a team I’m really happy and also with the attitude the girls put up in the tournament because we came all out to make sure we had fun.