Super Falcons striker Uchenna Kanu has revealed that some Nigeria players struggled to eat the day after their painful Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) quarter-final defeat to Cameroon.
Nigeria’s hopes of defending their WAFCON title and securing an automatic qualification spot for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup suffered a major blow after the Super Falcons lost 1-0 to Cameroon in Casablanca on Sunday.
The defeat ended Nigeria’s title defence and sent the Indomitable Lionesses into the semi-finals, while Cameroon also secured one of Africa’s four automatic tickets to the 2027 Women’s World Cup.
Nigeria, meanwhile, were left with the longer qualification route and must now navigate the playoff pathway to keep their hopes of reaching the tournament alive.
Speaking more than 24 hours after the defeat, Kanu said the mood in the Super Falcons camp remained low, with some players unable to eat as they struggled to come to terms with the result.
“I think right now, it is late the next day after the game, and people are still dragging their feet,” Kanu told ESPN.
“We are still sad. I’m still sad. It has been long hours from the game and everybody’s just been down, to be honest. Right from the moment after the game, the emotion was really high.”
According to the Cruz Azul forward, several players skipped breakfast and lunch the following day because of their disappointment.
“People are still in their feelings,” she said.
“Some people didn’t even come out today for breakfast. Most of us, like myself, I didn’t have breakfast. I
didn’t show up to lunch.
“It was later in the afternoon that I decided to eat something. And it is just the same as some of my teammates. We’ve all been down.”
Cameroon took the lead in the 19th minute through Myriam Nyadjou and held on to their advantage despite sustained pressure from Nigeria.
Kanu, who started Nigeria’s earlier group-stage match against Egypt, came on in the 38th minute for Rinsola Babajide as coach Justine Madugu attempted to change the course of the game.
The forward had opportunities to level the score but was denied by an impressive display from Cameroon’s goalkeeper Michaely Bihina.
Kanu, however, believes Nigeria produced their strongest performance of the tournament but were let down by several factors, including the playing surface and officiating.
“A lot of factors played into the game. The officiating was not the best we’ve seen. The officials were not on their best performance. Also, the field was not a great field, to be fair,” she said.
“I know my girls, we did really well. We played our best game so far, but it was not good enough to secure the ticket and we were all disappointed.”
Kanu was among the Nigerian players seen crying after the final whistle and admitted that the defeat was particularly difficult to accept.
“I cried my eyes out, so did my teammates. We felt really terrible,” she said.
“That was not the promise we made to Nigerians and it was a very disappointing night for all of us.”
Despite the disappointment, Kanu said the team must learn from the defeat and immediately turn their attention to their next challenge.
“We would take it as a lesson learned, and we build with it, and we look forward to putting everything right on Thursday, leaving everything on the field on Thursday against South Africa.”
Nigeria will face South Africa on Thursday in a playoff that will determine which team advances to FIFA’s intercontinental playoff tournament.
Both teams were eliminated in the WAFCON quarter-finals, meaning the clash is now vital to their hopes of reaching the 2027 Women’s World Cup in Brazil.
The Super Falcons have featured at every edition of the Women’s World Cup since the inaugural tournament in 1991, and Kanu said maintaining that record is now the team’s priority.
“Our main focus right now would be on Thursday’s game and hopefully we progress from there. Hopefully, by the end of the game on Thursday, we would feel alive again,” she said.
“Right now, emotions are very down. We’re putting our best, and we hope to eventually secure the ticket for the 2027 World Cup.”
Vanguard News
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