The Flamingos hold the bragging rights against Colombia, ahead of today’s semi-final clash of the ongoing U-17 Women’s World Cup in Goa, India. Both sides have met twice in the competition, with the Nigerians winning both games.
And the South Americans will be hoping to avenge their previous defeats in the 2012 and 2014 editions, when they lost 3-0 and 2-1 to Flamingos respectively.
Here, PUNCH Sports Extra takes a look at five key Colombian players Flamingos must watch out for to ensure a smooth ride into Sunday’s final
Linda Caicedo
The Colombia skipper is currently the tournament’s top scorer with four goals and has won two Player of The Match awards in the tournament; first when Colombia defeated China 2-0 and their 2-1 victory over Mexico in the group stage.
Juana Ortegon
Ortegon will be hoping to have fun when she and her teammates file out against Nigeria today. The 16-year-old midfielder, who was part of the Colombia U-20 team at the Women’s U-20 World Cup in Costa Rica, will hope to shoot her country to the final.
Gabriela Rodriguez
In jersey No.10, Rodriguez, a 17-year-old prolific midfielder, had an outstanding match during Colombia’s 3-0 quarter-final win over Tanzania and won the Player of The Match award.
Known for her superb creativity in the centre, and a good ball passer, Rodriguez can wreak havoc on their opponents with her defence-splitting passes if given enough space to operate.
Yesica Munoz
Just one goal in four games in the tournament doesn’t suggest the rate of hard work and contribution Munoz brings to the Colombian squad. The Flamingos must watch out for the 17-year-old Colombia striker; she’s going to be handful, as she will be hoping to add to her goals tally, as well as help her side reach a first-ever final.
Luisa Agudelo
At just 15, the goalkeeper has had an impressive outing, conceding just two goals and kept two clean sheets in four games.
His first clean sheet was against China in the group stage and Tanzania in the quarter-finals, where she denied the African side from scoring and ended their fairytale run in India.
Flamingos have often been wasteful, but if they hope to reach the final, they must be clinical in front of Agudelo’s goal.
