Coach of the Flamingos of Nigeria, Hakeem Busari, said his team became champions of the 2026 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup because they followed instructions.
The coach said this on Tuesday in Abuja during the team’s media parley with journalists.
Busari said his team worked on a plan for each game and that his girls executed it perfectly.
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“I told them if you played according to this particular plan, we are scoring four goals. If you stick to the plan, we are getting the win.
“There was a plan for each game and they followed it. I was reminding them from the sidelines to stick to our plans.
“That’s why you see them giving me thumbs up during the matches,” he said.
Asked what is next for him and his girls after making history in Morocco, Busari said they await directive from the NFF.
“We give glory to God for a successful tournament. We are now looking up to our bosses for direction on what is next,” he added.
Speaking to reporters, golden ball winner of the tournament, Oluebube Umejiaku, said her second goal against Japan in the final was as a result of coach Busari’s halftime advice.
“In the first half, I missed a goal-scoring chance because I was trying to dribble the goalkeeper before shooting the ball.
“So in the second half, my coach told me that wasn’t how to do it. He asked me to tip the ball next time. So when I saw the goalkeeper coming and she was down, I tipped the ball and it went in,” Umejiaku said.
Captain of the team, Chidi Harmony, said that the team winning the World Cup was just a starting point.
“For us, this is the starting point. We have not arrived. We want to learn from our mistakes so that we can win more trophies for Nigeria in future.”
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