Nigeria’s conveyor belt of attacking talent has rarely run dry.
From Mercy Akide to Perpetua Nkwocha, from Desire Oparanozie to Asisat Oshoala, the Super Falcons have always had at least one forward capable of bending matches to her will. The question now is whether Joy Omewa is next in line.
If you haven’t heard of Omewa yet, don’t worry. You soon will.
The 22-year-old has been quietly terrorising defenders in Denmark with Fortuna Hjørring, putting together numbers that would make even the great Oshoala pause.
On Friday evening, she was at it again, scoring twice in Fortuna’s 6–1 dismantling of Kolding IF in the Danish Women’s League.
Her first was all confidence, a cheeky panenka from the penalty spot in the 62nd minute. Her second was audacity itself: a lob from near the halfway line that left the goalkeeper stranded and the crowd gasping.
Ten goals in all competitions this season, five consecutive matches scored in, and a brace wrapped up inside four minutes. It was the kind of ruthless, joyful finishing that makes the case for her Super Falcons debut stronger by the week.
Numbers that shout louder than words
To say Omewa is in form is an understatement.
Last season, she plundered 22 goals and four assists in just 24 league matches, dragging Fortuna to both the Danish league title and the Cup.
This campaign, she already has seven goals and an assist in eight league games, plus three more in the UEFA Women’s Champions League. That’s 32 goals in her last 36 competitive matches.
No Nigerian forward in Europe can match that output. Not Oshoala in Saudi Arabia. Not Gift Monday in the United States. Not Esther Okoronkwo in Canada.
Right now, Omewa is statistically the most prolific Nigerian striker in Europe.
And yet, when the Super Falcons coach Justin Madugu named his squad for July’s Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON), Omewa was nowhere to be found.
Her omission made headlines, though Nigeria went on to win the trophy, sparing Madugu any backlash. But if results had gone differently, that decision would have been difficult to defend.
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The timing could not be better
Football has a way of creating openings at exactly the right time.
On Saturday, Ifeoma Onumonu, one of Nigeria’s senior forwards, announced her retirement from international football at 31.
She would almost certainly have been part of the squad for this month’s WAFCON qualifiers against Benin Republic. Instead, her departure has left a vacancy in attack, one that Omewa seems perfectly primed to fill.
Bayern Munich-owned forward Edna Imade is another forward in contention, a talented striker who many view as a long-term heir to Oshoala.
But when it comes to form, there is no comparison. Omewa is scoring at a rate that demands attention. Her confidence is unshakable, her finishing clinical, her style unafraid of risk. You don’t chip a goalkeeper from 40 yards unless you are brimming with belief.
Nigeria beyond Oshoala
Oshoala remains Nigeria’s most recognisable attacking star, still banging in goals for fun in Saudi Arabia.
But she is now 30, and while she can still influence matches, her peak years are behind her. The Falcons need to start planning for life after their six-time African Women’s Footballer of the Year.
Imade looks like a long-term project. Omewa, however, feels ready now.
Her ability to score different types of goals – penalties, poacher’s finishes, long-range stunners – makes her an unusually complete striker for her age.
The former Confluence Queens star is also showing maturity beyond her years: leading the line in Champions League games, thriving under pressure, and proving she can carry a team’s scoring burden.
Ready for green and white
There is no better time to give her the stage. A brace on Friday, a Champions League goal the week before, and a record that screams consistency; Omewa has done everything she can at club level to earn her chance.
It is no longer about potential; it is about production. Omewa is producing at a level the Super Falcons cannot afford to ignore.
Onumonu’s retirement has opened a door. Madugu would be wise to walk Omewa through it.
The Falcons have never been shy of trusting young attackers. Oshoala herself was thrown into the deep end a decade ago after the U20 World Cup and never looked back. Omewa deserves that same leap of faith.
Nigeria’s future in attack is beginning to take shape. Imade might be the long-term successor. But for now, the Falcons’ most urgent need is goals, and nobody is providing them as relentlessly as Joy Omewa.
If there was ever a time to unleash her in green and white, it is now.
