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Tag: 2023 Women’s World Cup

  • 2023 Women’s World Cup Semi-Finals Set as Colombia Exits the Tournament

    2023 Women’s World Cup Semi-Finals Set as Colombia Exits the Tournament

    By Daniel Edu

    The quarter-final stage of the 2023 Women’s World Cup has concluded, marking the end of the journey for four teams in the past 48 hours.

    The first team to secure their place in the next round was Spain’s Women’s national team, who triumphed over the Netherlands with a 2-1 victory on Friday.

    Mariona Caldentey’s penalty kick in the 81st minute and an extra-time goal by Paralluelo Ayingono propelled the Spanish team into the semi-finals.

    Subsequently, Japan, a team that seemed poised to secure their third Women’s World Cup victory, suffered a 2-1 defeat against Sweden in the quarter-finals.

    A goal from Ilestedt in the first half and another from Angeldal in the second half rendered Japan’s 81st-minute goal inconsequential, leading to their exit from the 2023 Women’s World Cup.

    Today, co-hosts Australia engaged in a grueling 120-minute battle to eliminate France from the tournament. After a goalless draw, the two teams resorted to a penalty shootout that saw 13 goals in total.

    Australia emerged victorious with a 7-6 score, propelling the co-hosts to the semi-finals for the first time in their history.

    The final quarter-finals clash in the 2023 Women’s World Cup pitted England against Colombia. Despite being without their leading goalscorer, Lauren James, who was suspended for two matches due to an incident involving a Super Falcons’ defender, Michelle Alozie, England secured a 2-1 victory over Colombia.

    Goals from Hemp and Russo propelled England to qualify for the Women’s World Cup semi-finals for the third time in their history.

    The semi-finals fixtures for the 2023 Women’s World Cup are as follows:

    1. Spain vs. Sweden, scheduled for 9 a.m. on August 15.

    2. Australia vs. England, scheduled for 11 a.m. on August 16.

  • Tinubu and His Wife to Receive Falcons

    Tinubu and His Wife to Receive Falcons

    Tinubu and Wife Praise Resilient Super Falcons Despite World Cup Exit

    Despite their exit from the ongoing 2023 Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, President Bola Tinubu and his wife, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, have expressed their admiration for the Super Falcons’ efforts, announcing plans to honor the team upon their return to the country.

    The Super Falcons displayed dominance but fell short as England capitalized on their numerical advantage after Lauren James received a red card, leaving them with 10 players.

    The Lionesses eliminated Nigeria from the Women’s World Cup in a last-16 penalty shootout in Brisbane on Monday. Chloe Kelly’s crucial penalty kick secured England’s victory after Desire Oparanozie and Michelle Alozie missed for the Africans, following a tense 0-0 draw over 120 minutes.

    In a post-match Tweet, Tinubu lauded the performance of the 11-time champions. “I must applaud the dedication of our Super Falcons @NGSuper_Falcons at the FIFA Women’s World Cup,” wrote the President. “Your exceptional display did not go unnoticed despite the final result. You brought pride to Nigeria on the global stage!”

    Addressing the media, First Lady Oluremi Tinubu acknowledged the Falcons’ exceptional performance and confirmed the nation’s warm reception for the team. She remarked, “I want to emphasize that they played exceptionally well and we are truly proud of them. We gave England a tough competition, and we eagerly await their return.”

    “The match was no walk in the park for England. It was a surprise challenge, and they truly showcased exceptional soccer,” she added.

    Ranked 40th in the world, the Super Falcons have exited their ninth World Cup at the round of 16 stage for the second consecutive time. They previously faced elimination by Germany in 2019.

  • Top Five Players To Lookout For At FIFA Women’s World Cup

    Top Five Players To Lookout For At FIFA Women’s World Cup

    Five players to watch at FIFA Women’s World Cup

    The top women’s footballers on the planet will be in action when the World Cup kicks off on Thursday in Australia and New Zealand.

    Below is a list of the five players to watch:

    – Alexia Putellas (Spain) –
    The 29-year-old attacking midfielder is considered by many to be the best women’s footballer in the world.

    Winner of the Women’s Ballon d’Or in each of the last two years, in February she retained her crown as The Best FIFA’s Women’s Player for 2022, despite missing the second half of the year with a serious knee injury.

    Barcelona star Putellas is the first woman to reach 100 caps for Spain and they badly missed her creativity and goals at the 2022 European Championship, where they lost to eventual champions England in the quarter-finals.

    Putellas was among the Spanish players demanding change within the national side but did not join in with 15 players who last year asked not to be called up, amid differences with coach Jorge Vilda and the Spanish football federation.

    – Sam Kerr (Australia) –
    If the co-hosts are to go far at the World Cup they will need Chelsea forward Kerr firing on all cylinders.

    The 29-year-old Australia skipper made her international debut aged just 15 and has played over 120 times for her country, averaging a goal every other game. She scored five times at the 2019 World Cup.

    Her numbers are just as impressive at Chelsea, hitting 29 goals in 38 appearances this season.

    Kerr is such a big name at home that she was Australia’s flag-bearer at the coronation of King Charles.

    – Megan Rapinoe (United States) –
    She needs little introduction as the most instantly recognisable player in women’s football.

    The attacker has played 199 times for the United States, scoring 63 goals and making 73 assists. She has won the World Cup twice. Now Rapinoe plays in the United States for OL Reign.

    She is set for retirement at the end of this season and is something of a fading force at 38, but she remains the face of women’s football for the casual fan.

    Off the field, the openly gay Rapinoe is outspoken on a number of issues that go beyond sports, including advocating for LGBTQ rights.

    – Keira Walsh (England) –
    England’s hopes of winning the World Cup for the first time have taken a hit with the injury loss of several key players, putting even more onus on midfielder Walsh.

    Barcelona snapped her up from Manchester City for a reported 400,000 pounds ($508,000) last September, a world record for a woman footballer.

    With her passing, reading of the game and ability to win the ball back, Walsh was instrumental in Sarina Wiegman’s England winning the Euro on home soil in 2022.

    She was named player of the match when England defeated Germany 2-1 in the final at Wembley in extra time.

    – Ada Hegerberg (Norway) –
    The Norwegian was the first winner of the Women’s Ballon d’Or, in 2018, and is a prolific striker with leading French side Lyon.

    Her Norway career has been stop-start, however. She withdrew from the international scene in 2017, citing concerns over the inequality of treatment given to men’s and women’s teams by the Norwegian federation. She only returned last year.

    The 28-year-old forward has also been dogged by injuries.

    But when on form and firing she is one of the best players in the world, and averages more than a goal a game for her club.

    She is the all-time top scorer in the UEFA Women’s Champions League with 59 goals.

    AFP

  • Buhari Hails Super Falcons’ Qualification For 2023 Women’s World Cup

    Buhari Hails Super Falcons’ Qualification For 2023 Women’s World Cup

    President Muhammadu Buhari congratulates Nigeria’s Female Football team, the Super Falcons, for qualifying for the Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand in 2023 after their emphatic quarter-final victory at the ongoing Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) in Morocco.

    Super Falcons, the record nine-time tile holder and defending champions of WAFCON, triumphed 1-0 over Cameroon on Thursday night.

    In a statement by his special adviser Femi Adesina, the president lauded the spirited performance of the team in the tournament and for maintaining its dominant posture as undisputed champions of the round-leather game and most successful international women’s football team in the continent.

    Having won the tournament twice in 2016 and 2018, under this administration, the president assured the girls and their handlers that the whole nation is strongly standing with them and will continue to cheer them on until the final whistle in Morocco.

    He prayed that the Super Falcons, who have produced some of the greatest African players in the history of the women’s game, will surpass their achievement in the last Women’s World Cup in 2019, where they advanced to the Round of 16, for the first time in 15 years.

    President Buhari also said he looks forward to the next generation of upcoming stars, who through hard work, discipline, resilience and determination, will one day win the World Cup for Nigeria.