Nigeria's Falconets got the job done against Malawi in the first leg of their 2026 U-20 Women's World Cup qualifying final, winning 2-0 in Ikenne. But head coach Moses Aduku wasn't exactly celebrating like he'd just won the lottery. He said the team's overall performance didn't impress him, even though they got the three points.
The match was settled early when Malawi put the ball in their own net in the first minute. That kind of gift goal usually makes things easier, right? Not really, if your coach thinks you should have been better anyway. Aduku's point is fair though. When you're playing a smaller team at home and you're thinking about the World Cup, you want to see your players dominating, creating chances, and playing the kind of football that wins tournaments.
This is a qualifying final, which means there's a second leg coming. The Falconets won't want to play like this again because Malawi will be tougher at home, and you don't want to give them any hope or momentum. Aduku knows that too. His comments weren't criticism for the sake of it. They're a wake-up call before the return match.
The Falconets have been one of Africa's best youth women's teams for years, so expectations are high. This squad is supposed to be going places, and beating Malawi with an own goal in the first minute isn't the standard they want to set for themselves. If they want to actually get to the 2026 World Cup, they need to look sharper, more clinical, and more like a team that belongs on the biggest stage.
The second leg will tell us if Aduku's tough love approach worked.
