*Ian Wright tells NFF to pay Super Falcons
Super Falcons on Thursday defeated Australia 3-2 at the Brisbane Stadium to clinch their first win.
The Nigerian female beat their opponent to record their first win in the competition and the fifth win in the history of the Women’s World Cup.
Before the match, the PUNCH reported that the nine-time African champions have recorded only four wins in the history of the competition – two at the 1999 edition (against North Korea and Denmark), against Canada in 2011, and at the 2019 edition, where they also recorded a 2-0 win over North Korea.
With the win, the Super Falcon’s chance of reaching the round of 16 have been boosted after Canada secured a 2-1 victory against Ireland on Wednesday.
In their opening match at the tournament, the Falcons displayed defensive prowess, including goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie saving a penalty, to secure a commendable point.
In their only previous Women’s World Cup meeting in 2015, Australia emerged victorious with a 2-0.
Meanwhile, Arsenal legend, Ian Wright, has waded into the controversy surrounding the payment dispute between the Nigeria Football Federation and the country’s women football team, Super Falcons.
The English TV personality, in a tweet using his verified handle on Thursday, wrote, “Pay them!!! @thenff,” with a flag of Nigeria attached to the post.
He made the post after the Nigerian female team recorded a stunning victory against Australia – the host country of the ongoing Women’s World Cup.
According to the Daily Mail, the Super Falcons will not be paid their tournament match bonuses following an announcement from FIFA that all players would receive around £15,760 (AUS$30,000) for participation in the group stages of the tournament.
There were set to be separate payments following each of Nigeria’s group games against Canada, Australia and Ireland in addition to this.
The team had even threatened to go on strike for the first match of the competition against Canada – who are also in the middle of a pay dispute with their own FA seeking equal pay and support with the men’s team, the Daily Mail reports.
The players’ manager, Randy Waldrum, had openly expressed criticism against the treatment of his players.
His previous complaints include disagreements over unpaid wages, poor travel arrangements and the cancellation of a pre-tournament camp leading up to the Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, the Daily Mail reports.
“I know we are not prepared the way we need to be … I’ve been very frustrated with the federation and the lack of support.
“We were supposed to have a camp for 10 to 12 days in Nigeria before going to Australia for another 10 to 15 days, but the federation cancelled the home camp.
“We have less days than a College pre-season to prepare for the World Cup, and it blows my mind because we’ve known about this since last year,” Waldrum was quoted as saying on the Sounding off on Soccer podcast.
According to the Daily Mail, the representative of the federation, Ademola Olajire, called for Waldrum to simply concentrate on the task at hand.
Despite the uncertainty surrounding the payment, the Nigerian squad had remained undeterred and unbeaten after two games in the tournament.
