Nigeria vs Senegal: Aduku confident as Falconets chase another World Cup ticket

Nigeria’s Falconets will host Senegal in a crucial FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup qualifying match in Ibadan on Saturday, 7 February, as they continue their push to reach the Poland 2026 finals, Soccernet.ng reports.

The match is the first leg of a third-round qualifier and will be played at the Lekan Salami Stadium. The return leg will take place in Dakar on 14 February. The winner over two legs will move one step away from the World Cup.

Falconets head coach Moses Aduku says his team is in good shape after several weeks of training. All invited players have been in camp and have shown strong effort and focus. The coaches have worked on team shape, movement and understanding between the players.

Aduku is not new to this level. He was part of Nigeria’s coaching crew at the 2022 World Cup, where the Falconets reached the quarter-finals. He now hopes to guide the team even further.

Nigeria have a strong history in this competition. The Falconets have qualified for every edition of the U20 Women’s World Cup. They finished second in 2010 and 2014 and reached the semi-finals in 2012.

Senegal are aiming to secure their first-ever qualification to the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup.

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Falconets: Focus on Ibadan first, then the final round

Nigeria's Falconets are looking to be one of four teams to represent the continent at the 2026 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup in Poland.

Nigeria defeated Rwanda five-nil on aggregate in the second round while Senegal outclassed Algeria 6-0 over two legs to reach this stage.

The winner of the clash between the Falconets and the Senegalese will advance to the third and final round of the qualifiers, where either Guinea-Bissau or Malawi awaits. Four African teams will qualify for the World Cup in Poland, which will be held from 5 to 27 September 2026.

Still, coach Aduku maintains that his team is taking things one step at a time. The main goal now is to get a good result in Ibadan before travelling to Senegal.

Several friendly matches have been played to test ideas and improve the team. The coaches have worked on attacking play but have also paid attention to defending well as a unit.

The team will move to Ibadan on 27 January to complete their preparations for the match.