By Harry Awurumibe, Editor Abuja Bureau
Morocco will fight to erase the sad memory of 8-0 humiliation the Atlas Lionnesses suffered in the hands of Nigeria’s Super Falcons in the opening match of the maiden CAF African Women Championship (AWC) when both teams meet again in Rabat on Monday in the semi final of the on-going 2022 Women Africa Cup of Nation (WAFCON) in Morocco.
The first-ever match between both countries
took place at Ranch Bees Stadium, Kaduna in the northern part of Nigeria on Saturday, October 17, 1998, which will be exactly 24 years, six months and 18 days on Monday, July 28, 2022.
The result of the encounter was
a heart-break for the Moroccans who were over ran by a formidable Super Falcons team which did not lose any game to African opposition in over a decade.
Handled by former Green Eagles (Super Eagles) star, Coach Ismaila Mabo, the Super Falcons crushed every opposition and did not conceed a single goal on the way to lifting the 1st WAFCON trophy after beating rivals Ghana Black Queens 2-0 in the epic final at Gateway Stadium, Abeokuta in Ogun state, courtesy of Nkeiru Okosieme and Stella Mbachu goals in the 43′ and 64′ respectively.
Since then Morocco and Nigeria have not met again and the closest they have been to square up was at last year’s 6-Nation Aisha Buhari Invitational tournament in Lagos but they did not meet again as the grouping separated both countries in the competition South Africa won, no thanks to the 4-2 mauling of Nigeria in the final match at Mobolaji Johnson Arena, Onikan.
But come Monday night at Complexe Prince Moulay Abdallah in Rabat at 21:00 Nigeria Time (+1 GMT), same as Morocco Time, both Nigeria and Morocco will clash in high-profile match that will mean much to either side because the winner of the encounter will qualify for the 2022 WAFCON final.
Host nation defeated Botswana 2-1 in the quarter final to book a date with Nigeria who beat Cameroon 1-0 in another quarter final on Thursday.
On paper, Nigeria is heads and shoulders above Morocco, if the number of times the West Africans have won WAFCON can be used to gauge success. Besides, to be a 9-time African Champions since 1998 is not a mere coincidence as the Super Falcons have earned their respect as the best team in Africa at the moment.
However, Atlas Lionesses Class of 2022 WAFCON are not the same as the Class of 1998 because both Head Coach Reynald Pedro and the Royal Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF) under veteran African football administrator, President Fouzi Lekjaa whose four-year Women’s Football Development Plan has revolutionised women’s football in Morocco and Africa in general, have done great jobs in resetting the team.
Specifically, President Fouzi Lekjaa’s foresight to hire a very technically and tactically sound coach, Reynald Pedros to be the Head Coach of Atlas Lionesses in 2020 has paid off handsomely as in less than two years, Morocco got her first FIFA Women’s World Cup ticket and a place in the team’s first-ever WAFCON semi final match.
Pedros, a master tactician with an intimidating records of successes with top European women’s football club, Olympique Lyonnais Féminin, France, has done a fantastic job so far with the Atlas Lionesses.
He has brought his winning mentality which saw him lead the club to retain the Division 1 Féminine Championship for the 12th and 13th time and also succeeding in guiding the team to retaining the UEFA Women’s Champions League for the 3rd and 4th time, has used the average Moroccan players to win many matches since he took charge.
He has in his fold an admixture of experience and youth, a combination which has seen the likes of team captain Ghizlane Chebbak, agile goalkeeper Khadija Err-michi, attacjers Rosella Ayane, Nesryne El Chad and defenders Zineb Redouani, Nahla Nakkach and Sabah Seghir as well as nimble-footed Fatima Tagnaout, churn out four victories out of four in the tournament.
Indeed, Pedros-tutored Atlas Lionesses have not lost nor drawn any match and have scored 7 goals and conceded 2 while
Nigeria scored 8, conceding 2 goals against South Africa in the 2-1 loss to the Banyana Banyana in the first game of the competition.
For the above reasons, both teams seem to be matched in all aspects of the game, although the North Africans are showing both power and athleticism on similar scale as can be found in sub-Saharan teams in this tournament.
This semi final match between Nigeria and Morocco , like the earlier tie between Nigeria and South Africa, will be won from the bench as the coach with better match strategy will carry the day.
This is where the expertise of Super Falcons Head coach Randy Marlon Waldrum, an American former professional soccer player and the current Head coach of University of Pittsburgh’s Panthers women’s soccer team, will be put to serious test.
Waldrum who had a stint as the Head coach of Trinidad and Tobago women’s national team for just two years was appointed into his present post by Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) in October 5, 2020,
the same year Morocco’s gaffer Pedros was hired.
The two foriegn coaches will come face-to-face on Monday night to showcase their football coaching prowess and the coach whose players will be able to prosecute his tactics on the field of play will carry the day as a winner must emerge in this match.
Will it be the defending champions, Nigeria or the hosts, Morocco that will qualify for 2022 WAFCON final?
Only 90 or 120 minutes will tell.
