Super Falcons: 4 reasons Cameroon’s Bihina could end Nnadozie’s Best Goalkeeper reign

Chiamaka Nnadozie has ruled African women’s goalkeeping for three straight years, but the 2026 CAF Women’s Goalkeeper of the Year race has taken a sharp turn, Afrik-Foot reports.

Cameroon goalkeeper Michaely Bihina has used the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco to put serious pressure on the Nigerian.

Nnadozie won the CAF award in 2023, 2024 and 2025. She was also named the best goalkeeper at the delayed 2024 WAFCON, helping Nigeria win a record-extending 10th continental title.

But Nigeria’s early exit from the 2026 tournament has changed the conversation. Cameroon reached the final after beating Nigeria 1-0 in the quarter-finals and then defeating hosts Morocco on penalties in the semi-finals. Bihina was at the centre of both victories.

🇨🇲 What a way to score your first WAFCON goal!!!

19 year old Myriam Nyadjou with a powerful free kick to give Cameroon the lead!!! pic.twitter.com/GS1bDsOUKx

— CHINEMEREMMA ACTIVE 🦅 (@CHINEMEREMMA993) August 9, 2026

The award will not be decided by one tournament alone, but the contrast between the two goalkeepers during the knockout stages has given Bihina a powerful argument.

Nnadozie’s brilliance in three years

Nnadozie’s claim to the crown is built on more than one good season. In 2023, the Paris FC goalkeeper became the first winner of the CAF Women’s Goalkeeper of the Year award.

Her reputation grew at the Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, where she produced a Player of the Match performance in Nigeria’s opening 0-0 draw with Canada and saved a penalty from Christine Sinclair. Nigeria, who face South Africa tonight, also kept clean sheets against Ireland and England during the tournament.

A year later, Nnadozie won the CAF award again after another strong campaign for Paris FC and Nigeria. She also represented the Super Falcons at the Paris Olympics. CAF praised her performances at both club and international level when she collected the 2024 prize.

Goalkeeper hat-trick unlocked!

Nnadozie. Three consecutive Women's Goalkeeper of the Year winner. 🧤🌟#CAFAwards2025 pic.twitter.com/dc4YZz72Wk

— CAF (@CAF_Online) November 19, 2025

Her third award came in 2025. Nnadozie helped Nigeria win the WAFCON, earning the tournament’s Golden Glove after the Super Falcons recovered from 2-0 down to beat Morocco 3-2 in the final. She also moved from Paris FC to Brighton & Hove Albion in England.

Her global reputation grew further in September 2025 when she finished fourth in the inaugural Women’s Yashin Trophy voting. That made her the first African goalkeeper to finish among the top four in the Ballon d’Or goalkeeper award.

Bihina’s rise in 2026

Bihina’s story is very different. The Cameroon goalkeeper has spent much of her career building her reputation in Portugal, first with Racing Power and later with Benfica.

Her 2023-24 season at Racing Power provided an early warning of her ability. She played 20 league matches, kept 14 clean sheets and conceded only eight goals. She was subsequently named the Portuguese women’s top-flight goalkeeper of the season.

Benfica then signed her in early 2026, giving the 22-year-old a much larger European platform. Her club opportunities have been limited, but her international performances have been enormous. The turning point came in the WAFCON quarter-final against a Super Falcons side, that needs one of these two coaches to replace Justine Madugu.

Cameroon scored through Myriam Maéva Nyadjou Wamen in the 19th minute. Bihina then protected the lead as Nigeria pushed for an equaliser, helping Cameroon secure a 1-0 win and eliminate the defending champions.

Three days later, she produced an even more dramatic performance against Morocco. The semi-final finished 0-0 after 120 minutes. In the 118th minute, Bihina saved Fatima Tagnaout’s penalty. Cameroon then won the shootout, with Bihina making three saves from Morocco’s attempts. Cameroon advanced to the final after the shootout ended 3-1.

Those two matches have changed the award debate and here are the reasons she could stop Nnadozie from claiming a fourth consecutive golden glove.

1. Bihina has delivered when the tournament became decisive

Goalkeepers are often judged most heavily in knockout football because one mistake can end a team’s tournament. Bihina has passed that challenge so far. Against Nigeria, she helped Cameroon protect a 1-0 advantage for more than 70 minutes after Nyadjou’s 19th-minute goal, making mine saves.

Against Morocco, she kept a clean sheet for 120 minutes and then became central to the penalty shootout victory. That sequence gives Bihina two high-pressure performances against two of Africa’s strongest women’s teams.

Nnadozie, by contrast, was already out of the tournament after Cameroon’s quarter-final victory.

The CAF award covers the full year, so Bihina’s knockout run does not automatically settle the race. However, performances at the continent’s main women’s tournament carry enormous weight when voters compare goalkeepers.

2. Bihina beat Nnadozie’s Nigeria head-to-head

This is perhaps the simplest argument in Bihina’s favour. Nigeria entered the quarter-final as the defending WAFCON champions and had won the tournament last year. Nnadozie also arrived as the reigning CAF Women’s Goalkeeper of the Year.

Cameroon won 1-0. Bihina kept a clean sheet. Nnadozie conceded the only goal of the match. That creates a direct comparison that is difficult to ignore. Bihina did not simply perform well in another match. She helped eliminate Nnadozie’s Nigeria from the competition.

The result also ended Nigeria’s attempt to defend its continental title and sent Cameroon into the semi-finals.

3. Her penalty saves against Morocco changed the race

Bihina’s semi-final performance gave her something Nnadozie cannot match in the 2026 WAFCON: a defining penalty-shootout performance. The Cameroon goalkeeper first stopped Tagnaout’s penalty in the 118th minute, keeping the score at 0-0.

MICHAELY BIHINA, Ballon d’Or Africain à seulement 22 ans. pic.twitter.com/TGJPtBsa2f

— LUCIDE. (@Dylan_Akame) August 12, 2026

She then saved three penalties in the shootout. Cameroon won 3-1 and booked a place in the final against Malawi. Penalty shootouts are difficult to predict, but three saves in one shootout, following a penalty save in extra time, gives Bihina easily the clearest individual goalkeeping moment of the tournament.

It also came against Morocco, the host nation, in front of a home crowd with a place in the final at stake.

4. Bihina has combined international success with a strong European rise

Bihina’s WAFCON run did not come from nowhere. Her numbers at Racing Power had already shown that she could perform consistently in Portugal, where she won the Portuguese top-flight goalkeeper award, ahead of more illustrious stars from Benfica and Sporting Lisbon.

Her move to Benfica earlier in the year added another major club to her career. Benfica are one of Portugal’s leading women’s clubs, and Bihina’s presence in their squad gives her access to European competition and a stronger club environment.

Her 2026 international campaign has now taken that progression to another level. If Cameroon beat Malawi in the WAFCON final, Bihina’s case becomes even stronger because she would have combined a major continental title with decisive knockout performances.

Even if Cameroon lose, reaching the final after eliminating Nigeria and Morocco gives her a strong body of work.

Nnadozie remains the reigning African goalkeeper of the year but her three-year spell at the top of the continental chart may be coming to an end, no small thanks to a Cameroonian youngster stopping everything thrown at her.