Malawi loss wake-up call – Madugu

Super Falcons head coach Justin Madugu has described Nigeria's surprising 3-2 loss to Women's Africa Cup of Nations debutants Malawi as a "timely wake-up call." Madugu accepted responsibility for the defeat, one of Nigeria's most unexpected in WAFCON history, while also addressing criticism regarding his team selection and player positioning.

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When things like this happen, everybody has their opinion. Everybody is entitled to say whatever they say. If we had won, the comments people would be making would not be the same.

One significant point of contention was fielding Michelle Alozie at left-back. Madugu defended this decision, stating it was not the cause of Nigeria's defensive lapses. He drew parallels to Ashleigh Plumptre's successful performance at left-back in a previous tournament, asserting that Alozie gave her best and that the team's belief in her ability to play there was the reason for her selection. "The mistake didn’t come from her position. It’s not her involvement in that area that caused the goals we conceded," Madugu stated.

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When we played the last edition, and Ashleigh played at left full-back, she wasn’t a left full-back, but she did very well, and everybody appreciated her performances. We had some challenges in defence, and I think Michelle deserves to be commended because she gave everything and played very well. The mistake didn’t come from her position. It’s not her involvement in that area that caused the goals we conceded. She’s a good defender, and if we didn’t believe she could play there, we wouldn’t have selected her.

Despite standing by his tactical choices, Madugu acknowledged the technical crew's ultimate responsibility for the outcome. He recognized that criticism is a natural consequence of poor results and assured that the team would analyze their mistakes and work to correct them. "We accept those comments, and we accept responsibility for what happened. We’ll go back, analyse our mistakes and work to correct them," he said.

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There will always be criticism when things go wrong. We accept those comments, and we accept responsibility for what happened. We’ll go back, analyse our mistakes and work to correct them. It’s a wake-up call for all of us. We know the importance of this tournament, and we’re not taking anything for granted.

Madugu also refuted suggestions that Nigeria had underestimated Malawi. Instead, he credited the Scorchers' improved performance to the overall growth of women's football across the continent and their consistent participation in regional competitions like COSAFA. He emphasized that any team qualifying for WAFCON deserves respect, and Malawi played well to earn their victory. The coach stressed that the defeat is a learning experience, and the team is focused on regrouping for their crucial upcoming matches.

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We never took them for granted. We’ve been following their progress and knew they were a good side. They prepared very well, and playing regularly within the COSAFA region has helped improve teams from that part of Africa. Any team that qualifies for the WAFCON deserves respect. Malawi played well, earned the result and deserved the victory.