Nigeria vs 30-goal Comoros: Why Eguavoen cannot afford to underestimate Olympic qualifier

Augustine Eguavoen’s first assignment as Super Falcons coach will look straightforward on paper, Afrik-Foot reports.

Nigeria, Africa’s record 10-time women’s champions, will face Comoros in the second round of the 2028 Olympic qualifiers in October.

Yet Comoros arrive with a warning that Nigeria cannot ignore. The Coelacanths scored 30 goals without conceding once in their first-round tie against Sudan.

Eguavoen, appointed on an interim basis after Justine Madugu was asked to step down, must now prepare Nigeria for a team that has already shown it can punish defensive mistakes.

Comoros arrive after a 30-goal statement

Comoros destroyed Sudan 17-0 in the first leg on June 3 before winning the return match 13-0 five days later.

The 30-0 aggregate score was built on ruthless attacking football. Nine different players scored in the first match, with Haloua Ahamada netting four times. Fatima Saïd Madjiri opened the scoring after only eight minutes, while Aliya Saïd, Shaima Boina Ali and Faïza Houmadi also scored twice.

The second match followed the same pattern. Comoros scored three times before half-time and added 10 more after the break to complete a clean sweep over Sudan. That emphatic result is a major sign of the team’s progress.

Nigeria will provide a far tougher test. Comoros were ranked 187th in the June FIFA women’s rankings, compared with Nigeria’s 36th, but their 30-goal qualifying run shows why rankings alone cannot decide a knockout tie.

Eguavoen: Nigeria have their own problems to fix

The Super Falcons enter the Olympic qualifiers after a difficult WAFCON campaign.

Nigeria began the tournament with a 3-2 defeat to Malawi, the first time they had lost to a debutant at the competition. They recovered with a 1-0 win over Zambia despite playing with 10 players for more than half an hour, then beat Egypt 6-2 to reach the quarter-finals.

The recovery ended against Cameroon. Myriam Nyadjou’s 19th-minute strike sent the Super Falcons out with a 1-0 defeat. South Africa then beat the dethroned champions 2-1 in the World Cup playoff, leaving Nigeria without a place at the 2027 Women’s World Cup.

That poor run cost Madugu and his entire technical crew their jobs. Eguavoen has now been handed the immediate task of rebuilding confidence before the Comoros tie.

Why Nigeria cannot take Comoros lightly

Nigeria received a bye into the second round because they were one of the three highest-ranked teams in the competition. Comoros had to fight through the opening round and did so with 30 goals and no concession.

The two teams will meet at the Remo Stars Stadium in Ikenne-Remo on October 9 and 13. That gives Nigeria home advantage in both legs, but it also puts pressure on Eguavoen to start strongly and avoid giving Comoros belief.

Nigeria returned to the Olympics at Paris 2024 after a 16-year absence. Africa has only two places at Los Angeles 2028, meaning every knockout round carries major consequences. Four two-legged rounds stand between Nigeria and another Olympic appearance.

A 30-0 aggregate victory over Sudan does not make Comoros favourites against Nigeria. It does, however, make complacency dangerous. Eguavoen’s first job is to ensure the Falcons treat the Coelacanths as a serious opponent from the opening whistle.