Moses Aduku says England failed to anticipate Nigeria’s quality as the Falconets stormed into the quarter-finals of the 2026 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup.

Nigeria’s U-20 women’s coach, Moses Aduku, has claimed that England underestimated the Falconets before paying the price in their emphatic 3-0 victory over the Young Lionesses in the Round of 16 at the 2026 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Poland on Thursday.

The Falconets, who progressed as runners-up in Group F, delivered a commanding performance at Stadion Miejski Bielsko-Biała to secure their place in the quarter-finals.

Nigeria took an early lead in the eighth minute through Tosin Rafiu, who put the Falconets ahead and set the tone for an impressive display.

England were handed an opportunity to level the scores in the 33rd minute after a VAR review resulted in a penalty being awarded. However, Nigeria goalkeeper Christiana Uzoma produced a crucial save to preserve the Falconets’ lead going into the break.

Nigeria returned from the interval with renewed intensity and doubled their advantage just two minutes into the second half, with Janet Akekoromowei finding the back of the net in the 47th minute.

The Falconets continued to control proceedings before substitute Mary Mamudu completed the scoring in the 73rd minute, calmly converting after Precious Oscar’s effort deflected into her path.

The victory sent Nigeria into the quarter-finals, while Aduku suggested that England had not expected the Falconets to produce such a strong performance.

“The English team is a very good side and I think they underrated us. They never believed that we could play up to this level,” Aduku said.

The coach, however, urged his players not to dwell too long on the victory, stressing that their focus must immediately shift to their next challenge.

Akekoromowei, who was named Player of the Match after scoring Nigeria’s second goal, said the Falconets travelled to Poland with the ambition of winning the tournament.

“The reason why we are here is to take the Cup home. We are going to give our all,” Akekoromowei said.

She added that the team remained focused and determined to achieve its objective.

Nigeria will face Colombia in the quarter-finals on Sunday after the South Americans defeated hosts Poland 1-0 in their Round of 16 encounter.

The quarter-final clash is scheduled to take place at the Władysław Król Municipal Stadium in Łódź, with kick-off set for 2 p.m. Nigerian time.