Flamingos beat Brazil 3-1 to reach U-17 World Cup final
Nigeria's Flamingos crushed Brazil 3-1 in Wednesday's FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup semi-final in Morocco, booking a historic spot in the final. Queen Joseph opened the scoring before Awawu Bashiru netted a brace to seal the victory.
Brazil coach Rilany Silva admitted her side paid for technical errors against Nigeria's physicality and pace. "We made a lot of mistakes in simple passes. We suffered a lot from the transitions and counter-attacks," she said, comparing the loss to their group-stage struggle against Ghana. The Flamingos' direct style overwhelmed a Brazilian team more comfortable with possession-based play.
This marks Nigeria's first appearance in a U-17 Women's World Cup final—making the Flamingos the first African team to reach this stage at this age level. They will face the winner of the other semi-final between Spain and North Korea, with the final scheduled for Sunday.
Brazil drops to the third-place playoff against North Korea on Saturday. For Nigerian fans, the question now shifts to the final opponent: Can the Flamingos maintain this counter-attacking mastery against either European champions Spain or disciplined North Korea to bring the trophy home?