WAFCON 2026: Nigeria vs Zambia – Prediction, team news and betting tips as Super Falcons seek first win

Nigeria’s defence of their Women’s Africa Cup of Nations crown is already hanging by a thread after only two games, Afrik-Foot reports.

And Saturday’s Group C showdown with Zambia at the Stade Olympique de Rabat could decide whether the Super Falcons stay in the competition on their own terms or spend the rest of the tournament chasing results.

Justin Madugu’s side arrived in Morocco as the highest-ranked team in the draw and the most successful in WAFCON history, only to be beaten 3-2 by debutants Malawi in a result that ended their proud record of never losing to a first-time WAFCON entrant. Zambia, by contrast, could not have made a stronger statement of their own, thrashing Egypt 6-0 with Barbra Banda scoring four times to move top of the group.

Nora Häuptle’s Copper Queens arrive full of confidence and with a point to prove after being beaten 5-0 by these same opponents in the quarter-finals two years ago, and they know a win here would go a long way to settling the group before the clash with Malawi on the final matchday.

Match preview: Champions under pressure face Zambia’s rebuilt threat

There is no getting around how damaging the Malawi result was for Nigeria.

The Super Falcons dominated large spells of possession in that opener but were picked apart on the counter by the Chawinga sisters, conceding twice inside six second-half minutes before Rasheedat Ajibade’s stoppage-time penalty and a late Uchenna Kanu strike turned a heavy defeat into a respectable scoreline.

Nigeria are ten-time African champions and were unbeaten in six matches on their way to lifting the trophy in 2025, so panic is premature, but Madugu now has almost no margin for error.

A repeat defeat would leave Nigeria needing a big win over Egypt just to sneak into the quarter-finals as one of the better third-placed sides, and with the top four semi-finalists earning automatic places at the 2027 World Cup in Brazil, the stakes stretch well beyond this single group.

Zambia’s position is far more comfortable. The 6-0 win over Egypt was their biggest victory in the tournament’s history to that point, and it was built on exactly the kind of direct, high-tempo football that troubled Nigeria in the corresponding fixture two years ago, before the Super Falcons eventually found their range in a 5-0 quarter-final rout.

Häuptle has had eighteen months to reshape this Zambia squad since replacing Bruce Mwape, and the improvement in structure and composure in possession was obvious against Egypt.

Banda and Racheal Kundananji are being talked about as one of the most dangerous forward partnerships anywhere at WAFCON 2026, and with Grace Chanda supplying from midfield, Zambia have the tools to punish exactly the kind of defensive uncertainty Nigeria showed against Malawi.

The broader context matters here too. Nigeria have never failed to escape a WAFCON group stage, and their squad still carries six-time African Footballer of the Year Asisat Oshoala, Ajibade and Chiamaka Nnadozie, all of whom were central to last year’s triumph.

Zambia, meanwhile, are chasing something they have never achieved: a first WAFCON title, or at the very least a run deep enough to banish memories of their quarter-final exit in 2025. Both camps have called this the biggest game of the group phase, and results elsewhere in Group C mean a win for either side here would leave them in outstanding shape to finish top and avoid a tougher draw in the last eight.

Head-to-head record

The recent history between them is built almost entirely around knockout football, and it strongly favours Nigeria. The two nations met in the quarter-finals of the last edition in 2024, where Nigeria produced their most emphatic result of that tournament, winning 5-0 on the way to a tenth continental title.

Zambia’s only win over Nigeria in the professional era came in the third-place play-off at WAFCON 2022, a 1-0 victory that remains a source of pride in Lusaka even four years on.

Beyond that, the ledger is almost entirely one-sided. Nigeria have beaten Zambia 6-0 in 2014 and 4-0 in 2018, both career-defining scorelines that underline just how rarely the Copper Queens have troubled the Super Falcons across a full ninety minutes.

Zambia’s players have been careful not to lean too heavily on those numbers this week. Defender Margaret Belemu said the current group is a different proposition to the one beaten 5-0 two years ago, and pointed out that momentum and personnel have shifted since then.

Nigeria will not need reminding of that history either way. A team that has won ten African titles does not fear anyone on reputation alone, but Madugu’s players know Saturday’s opponents are a considerably sharper outfit than the one they saw off in 2024.

Team news: Outs, doubts and predicted lineups

Nigeria’s biggest absence remains defender Ashleigh Plumptre, who is completely out of the tournament squad while she continues her recovery from injury. Her absence was keenly felt against Malawi, where Michelle Alozie was moved into the left-back role and the back four as a whole struggled to cope with quick transitions.

Madugu is under real pressure to find a defensive setup that can frustrate Zambia’s forward line, and reports from camp suggest he is exploring changes to personnel and shape rather than simply repeating the same back four.

Nnadozie is expected to keep her place in goal despite a difficult night against Malawi, where she was beaten at her near post twice and will want to put that display behind her quickly.

There is better news further forward. Esther Okoronkwo was passed fit before the tournament after recovering from a meniscus injury and should again offer an attacking outlet, while Oshoala remains available from the bench or the starting eleven depending on how Madugu wants to balance the side.

Nigeria’s midfield is expected to lean heavily on Jennifer Echegini and Deborah Abiodun to win the battle for territory and cut the supply line to Banda and Kundananji, mirroring the approach that worked so well in the 2024 quarter-final.

Predicted Nigeria XI (4-3-3): Nnadozie; Alozie, Oladipo, Demehin, Imuran; Ucheibe, Abiodun, Ajibade; Okoronkwo, Kanu, Babajide.

Zambia have no fresh injury concerns of note after their opening win and go into this one at close to full strength.

Banda’s four-goal haul against Egypt puts her top of the tournament’s scoring charts and she will start regardless of any rotation elsewhere, with Kundananji expected to keep her place alongside her in attack.

Häuptle used a settled group against Egypt and there is little reason to expect wholesale changes, though a slightly more conservative midfield setup would not be a surprise given the calibre of opponent.

Chanda’s creativity from midfield and Belemu’s experience at the back give Zambia balance that was not always present under the previous coaching regime.

Predicted Zambia XI (4-3-3): Nali; Nachula, Mweemba, Maluba, Belemu; Chileshe, Chanda, Mweemba; Kundananji, Banda, Mupopo.

The managers

Justin Madugu took interim charge of Nigeria in 2024 and immediately delivered a tenth WAFCON title, overturning a two-goal deficit against hosts Morocco in the final.

That achievement earned him a two-year contract extension and a nomination for the Ballon d’Or Women’s Team Coach of the Year award, making him the first African coach ever shortlisted for the honour.

His reputation has been built on calmness and tactical discipline rather than showmanship, and CAF has previously described him as a quiet tactician whose influence on the team is far greater than his public profile suggests.

The manner of the Malawi defeat will sting, but Madugu has already shown he can adjust a struggling side quickly, having rescued Nigeria’s WAFCON 2024 campaign from a poor start to lift the trophy.

Nora Häuptle, a 42-year-old Swiss former international defender, took charge of Zambia in January 2025 after two years coaching Ghana’s Black Queens.

She previously worked in the German Frauen-Bundesliga with SC Sand, where she was the division’s only female head coach at the time, and has also had spells with Switzerland’s youth setup and the Israeli national team.

Häuptle signed a three-year contract in Lusaka with a clear brief to build on Zambia’s bronze medal at WAFCON 2022 and their World Cup qualification the following year, and the destruction of Egypt suggests her methods are starting to click at exactly the right moment.

Tactical preview

Nigeria set up in a 4-3-3 against Malawi and are likely to retain a similar structure here, though how high the full-backs are allowed to push will be the key tactical question.

Against Malawi, Nigeria’s wide defenders committed heavily to attack and were repeatedly caught out by direct counters through the middle, which is exactly the kind of space Banda and Kundananji thrive in.

Expect Madugu to ask his full-backs to be more conservative and his double pivot of Ucheibe and Abiodun to sit deeper, prioritising control of central areas over an expansive attacking width.

Zambia’s approach against Egypt was built on quick vertical passing and getting Banda and Kundananji running in behind at the earliest opportunity, a plan that worked because Egypt’s back line sat too high and too narrow.

Nigeria’s defenders are considerably more experienced than Egypt’s and will look to defend deeper and in a more compact shape, inviting Zambia to have the ball in areas that carry less immediate danger.

The battle in central midfield could decide the outcome. Nigeria neutralised Zambia’s forwards in the 2024 quarter-final largely by winning the fight for second balls and cutting the supply line before it reached the front three, and Ucheibe and Abiodun will be asked to repeat that trick.

If Zambia’s midfield trio of Chanda and her teammates can get the ball forward quickly, Banda’s movement and Kundananji’s pace in behind will create problems regardless of how deep Nigeria sit.

Set pieces could also matter given both of Egypt’s concessions from penalties and corners in their opener, an area Nigeria’s taller centre-backs may look to exploit at the other end.