Five takeaways from Super Falcons’s slim loss to Brazil in Paris Olympics opener – “Nigeria’s own Alessandro Nesta”

Gabi Nunes’s excellent first-half strike was all Brazil needed to claim a hard-fought 1-0 victory over Nigeria in their opening Group C match at the Stade Matmut-Atlantique in Bordeaux on Thursday evening.

The Super Falcons huffed and puffed all evening but could not find the equaliser that their performance probably merited.

Soccernet.ng‘s Imhons Erons presents the five major takeaways from that encounter.

1. The Super Falcons are three players short of being world-beaters

Coach Randy Waldrum has clearly put together a team that is hard to beat on their day.

The central defensive duo of Osinachi Ohale and Oluwatosin Demehin are solid and mobile. Christy Ucheibe, Deborah Abiodun, and Toni Payne complement themselves well in midfield. While Rasheedat Ajibade is irreplaceable in attack.

However, Nigeria’s full-back positions need more quality options just as the team lacks a natural left winger.

Ihezuo has worked tirelessly in attack as expected but the Super Falcons urgently need a consistent goalscorer in the mould of the great Perpetual Nkwocha to turn this team into world beaters.

2. Nigeria’s poor run against Brazil continues

The Super Falcons have now lost each of their three meetings with Brazil.

After suffering a 4-3 extra-time defeat at the 1999 FIFA Women’s World Cup and a 3-1 loss at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Nigeria thought it was the perfect time to end Brazil’s dominance over the Falcons.

However, after missing several clear chances to take the lead, the Super Falcons were punished by Gabi Nunes’ brilliant shot off an assist from the ageless Marta.

The Falcons still do not have an antidote for the Brazilian magic.

3. Nigeria’s worst performer

Much was expected of Jennifer Echegini, especially after her excellent campaign in Italy for Juventus over the last six months.

The 23-year-old attacking midfielder had only just secured a move to PSG and her form would have given coach Waldrum the confidence to name her in the starting lineup.

However, Echegini struggled to show her quality in attack and did not do enough to support Okeke in defence.

She showed her quality once when she danced past her marker beautifully before smashing her effort high and wide but it was well deserved when she was hauled off the pitch at the start of the second half.

4. Nigeria’s best performer

Abiodun Deborah can be proud of her display despite being caught out of position a couple of times. But for a few misplaced passes, Christy Ucheibe would have scored a perfect ten.

Rasheedat Ajibade seems to be the only one with real quality in Nigeria’s attack and she was unlucky to not score while Nicole Payne’s performance off the bench suggests she merits a place in Nigeria’s starting eleven.

Still, Oluwatosin Demehin stands head and shoulder above her teammates today. The Stade Rennais defender was colossal at the back for Nigeria, making last-ditch tackles, protecting her goalkeeper and intercepting some dangerous Brazilian attacking plays.

Demehin did not put a foot wrong and she was without equal Nigeria’s best player on that Bordeaux pitch. Nigeria’s own Alessandro Nesta!

5. More work needs to be done before Spain

Against Brazil, the Super Falcons were guilty of making several unforced errors and too many misplaced passes.

There was very little to delight fans about the team’s transitional play while there was a general lack of quality in attack.

These are things the coaching crew must work on before Nigeria’s next game against world champions, Spain.

The Spaniards roared back from conceding an early goal to carving out a thrilling 2-1 victory over Japan to show that they mean business in this their maiden appearance at the Olympics.

Easily the best footballing country in the world at the moment, Spain will punish Nigeria’s errors far more than Brazil did.

To avoid defeat, the Super Falcons must play close to perfection. It is not mission impossible but if the Falcons do not raise the standard of their game, it could very well be!