Nigeria’s shock exit from the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations has opened a painful conversation about the Super Falcons’ preparations, their failure to defend their title and, now, the decisions made on the night that their historic WAFCON run finally came to an end.
Among those questions is one coming directly from inside the Nigerian camp.
Veteran Super Falcons forward Francisca Ordega, who has represented Nigeria at four previous FIFA Women’s World Cup tournaments, has revealed that she expected to be introduced during the quarter-final against Cameroon but was never called upon as the defending champions suffered a 1-0 defeat.
Ordega says the disappointment goes beyond being left on the bench.
She believes Nigeria’s problems began long before the Super Falcons walked onto the pitch in Morocco.
Nigeria’s Super Falcons Worst WAFCON Finish Ever
The Super Falcons entered the tournament as defending champions and the most successful team in the history of the WAFCON, with 10 titles to their name, but their title defence ended at the earliest stage they have ever suffered in the competition.
Cameroon defeated Nigeria 1-0 in Sunday’s quarter-final, with 20-year-old Myriam Nyadjou Wamen scoring the decisive goal with a spectacular free-kick in the 19th minute.
Nigeria pushed desperately for an equaliser and created several opportunities, but Cameroon goalkeeper Michaely Bihina produced a superb performance to keep the Super Falcons out.
The defeat not only ended Nigeria’s hopes of winning an 11th African title, but also denied them one of Africa’s four automatic qualification tickets for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil.
Now, the Super Falcons face South Africa in Casablanca on Thursday in a crucial World Cup play-in match.
Victory would keep Nigeria’s hopes of reaching Brazil alive through the inter-confederation play-offs.
Defeat, however, would send the 10-time African champions into uncharted territory.
Nigeria would miss the Women’s World Cup for the first time in their history.
And Ordega knows exactly how much is at stake.
Francisca Ordega Questions Nigeria’s Preparation
Speaking after Nigeria’s disappointing campaign, Ordega was asked whether she believed the Super Falcons had prepared adequately for the tournament.
Her answer was immediate.
“Of course not,” she began.
“Of course not. I think it’s something we really need to talk about.”
“If you’re coming for a World Cup competition or qualification, you have to prepare because everyone is coming here [with the] World Cup as everyone’s target.”
“Moving forward, we’ll be able to do better with our preparation.”
Nigeria’s preparations for the tournament were far from straightforward.
The WAFCON had originally been scheduled for March and April before being postponed, forcing the Nigerian team to abandon its initial preparation plans.
The Nigeria Football Federation subsequently faced difficulties securing suitable opposition for friendly matches before the tournament.
The Super Falcons eventually opened their pre-tournament camp in Morocco only about two weeks before the competition began.
A planned friendly against Ghana was also cancelled.
For Ordega, those shortcomings cannot simply be ignored after what happened on the pitch.
– Read More: What Went Wrong as Super Falcons Face Dangerous Road to 2027 World Cup After Disastrous WAFCON Setback
– Read More: ‘I Take Responsibility’ – Madugu Apologises to Nigerians After Super Falcons’ WAFCON Heartbreak
– Read More: Cameroon Ends Super Falcons WAFCON Reign, Shatters Knock Out History
‘I Can’t Imagine Us Being in this Position’ – Francisca Ordega
Nigeria’s campaign immediately became complicated after they suffered a shock 3-2 defeat to Malawi in their opening Group C match.
They recovered with a narrow 1-0 victory over Zambia before producing a much stronger attacking performance against Egypt, winning 6-2 to reach the quarter-finals.
However, against Cameroon, the Super Falcons could not find the goal they needed.
Ordega admitted that the outcome was difficult to comprehend given what Nigeria expected to achieve in Morocco.
“Really, I can’t imagine us being in the position where we are now,” she continued.
“Nigeria is a country where everybody wants to be at the tournament.
“Every time we’re here, we know why we came. It’s a big thing for us and all Nigerians back home.
“We wanted to qualify. That was our first aim.”
“We wanted to qualify for the World Cup, and that’s it.”
Those words exposed the magnitude of the situation facing Nigeria. The WAFCON was not simply about defending an African title.
It was also the principal route to securing automatic qualification for the 2027 Women’s World Cup.
By reaching the semi-finals, Nigeria would have guaranteed their place in Brazil.
Instead, their quarter-final defeat means they must now fight through an additional African play-in route before even reaching FIFA’s inter-confederation play-offs.
‘I Was Expecting to Go In’ – Ordega on her disappointment
Perhaps the most revealing part of Ordega’s assessment was her admission that she expected to play a role against Cameroon.
The veteran forward was among the experienced players available to Justin Madugu, but she remained on the bench throughout the crucial quarter-final.
With Nigeria chasing an equaliser and eventually throwing everything forward, Ordega expected her experience to be called upon.
“I was expecting to go in, yes, but the coach still has the best decision. Whatever decision he makes was best for the team, I guess,” she said.
Ordega, however, stopped short of publicly criticising Madugu.
Instead, she suggested that experience can sometimes make a difference in high-pressure knockout matches.
“Sometimes we need this kind of experience. Not every time, but sometimes we need experience in this kind of game.”
The timing of her comments is particularly interesting.
Nigeria were chasing a goal for much of the second half against a Cameroon side that had increasingly dropped deeper to protect their lead.
Bihina repeatedly denied the Super Falcons, including a crucial save from Uchenna Kanu’s header.
Nigeria’s final major opportunity fell to substitute Esther Okoronkwo deep into stoppage time.
She broke through the Cameroon defence and found herself with a chance to equalise, but her left-footed effort rolled agonisingly wide.
Asisat Oshoala, who was also introduced late, was unmarked and available for what could have been a simple tap-in.
The miss brought a furious reaction from Oshoala, but Ordega’s message was not one of blame.
‘In or Out, I’m Still Proud of the Girls’ – Ordega
Despite the heartbreak of being eliminated and remaining unused against Cameroon, Ordega insisted that her support for her teammates had not changed.
“In or out, I’m still proud of the girls. Painful? Yes. Heartbroken? Yes, but I’m still proud of the girls.”
Nigeria had gone into the tournament expecting to challenge for another title.
Instead, they became the first Nigerian team in WAFCON history to fail to reach the semi-finals.
And with South Africa now standing between them and the next stage of the World Cup qualification process, there is little time to dwell on what went wrong.
South Africa Now Stands Between Nigeria and Brazil
The Super Falcons’ next assignment could hardly be more important.
Nigeria will face South Africa on Thursday in Casablanca, with a place in FIFA’s inter-confederation World Cup play-offs at stake.
South Africa suffered a 2-1 defeat to hosts Morocco in their own WAFCON quarter-final, meaning Banyana Banyana also missed out on an automatic World Cup ticket.
The two African giants must now fight for the opportunity to continue their respective World Cup campaigns.
For Nigeria, the equation is brutally simple: win and survive; lose and potentially make history for all the wrong reasons.
A victory over South Africa would send Nigeria into FIFA’s inter-confederation play-offs scheduled for November and December, where teams from different confederations will compete for the remaining World Cup places.
It means the Super Falcons still have a route to Brazil.
But it is now a much longer and more difficult one than the automatic qualification they expected to secure by reaching the WAFCON semi-finals.
