Nigeria’s U-20 women’s national football team, the Falconets, secured a narrow 1-0 victory over Senegal in the first leg of the third round of the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup qualifiers. 

The match took place in Abeokuta, with Kindness Ifeanyi coming off the bench to score the decisive goal to give the Falconets the advantage ahead of the second leg.

The first half ended in a goalless stalemate as Nigeria huffed and puffed but was unable to break down the Senegalese defense. 

Both teams showed determination, but neither could find a breakthrough before the interval, leaving the score at 0-0 at halftime.

The deadlock was eventually broken in the second half when Ifeanyi connected with a well-taken corner to give the Falconets the lead. 

The goal proved to be the difference as Nigeria managed to maintain the advantage until the final whistle.

With this 1-0 win, the Falconets will carry a slender lead into the return leg, where they will aim to secure qualification for the fourth and final round of the African qualifiers for the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup, officially tagged Poland 2026.