Nigeria’s Super Falcons played out a goalless draw in an international friendly against Portugal in Lisbon on Monday as part of preparations for the 2024 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON), Afrosport reports.
The nine-time African champions weathered an early storm from the hosts at the Estadio Jose Gomes, with goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie pulling off some great saves in a fruitless first half.
Play resumed in the second half, and the Super Falcons showed an improved performance with a mixture of crisp passing and solid defensive awareness.
They came close to breaking the deadlock in the 80th minute through Francisca Ordega, but her audacious looping effort from way out was denied by the crossbar.
The Super Falcons held on for the draw and failed to score a goal for the first time since last April when they held South Africa to a goalless draw in the second leg of their qualifiers for the Paris 2024 Olympics.
Justine Madugu’s side will shift their attention to Sunday’s friendly against Ghana’s Black Queens in Morocco, their final warm-up game before the WAFCON.
The Super Falcons are drawn in Group B of the tournament alongside Algeria, Botswana and Tunisia, whom they will play in their first match on 6 July.
