Nigeria’s defence of the 2026 Ladies’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) title bought off to a poor begin after Malawi claimed a well-known 3-2 victory over the Tremendous Falcons of their Group C opener in Rabat.
The consequence is without doubt one of the largest upsets within the match’s historical past, with Malawi celebrating their first-ever WAFCON win on their debut look.
The Chawinga sisters had been the celebs of the night time. Temwa Chawinga scored twice, whereas Tabitha Chawinga added one other as Malawi shocked the defending champions.
Nigeria struggled all through the primary half and didn’t register a single shot on course. Head coach Justine Madugu began with Esther Okoronkwo, Folashade Ijamilusi and Chinwendu Ihezuo in assault, however the trio discovered it tough to interrupt down a disciplined Malawi defence.
The Tremendous Falcons additionally struggled with poor passing, weak communication and gradual attacking play, whereas Malawi appeared harmful every time they moved ahead.
Tabitha Chawinga thought she had opened the scoring early within the second half, however her effort was dominated out for offside.
Madugu responded by introducing Toni Payne and Uchenna Kanu within the 56th minute, and Nigeria started to create extra probabilities. Kanu instantly added tempo to the assault, whereas Rasheedat Ajibade pressured Malawi goalkeeper Mercy Sikelo right into a save with a header.
Malawi lastly broke the impasse within the 73rd minute. Ireen Khumalo’s lengthy go cut up Nigeria’s defence, permitting Temwa Chawinga to race by way of, spherical goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie and calmly rating Malawi’s first-ever WAFCON purpose.
Six minutes later, Nigeria’s defence was caught out once more. One other lengthy ball discovered Tabitha Chawinga, who completed confidently to double Malawi’s lead and depart the Tremendous Falcons in deep trouble.
Asisat Oshoala got here on late as Nigeria looked for a means again into the match. The Tremendous Falcons pulled one again within the 88th minute after Rose Alufandika dealt with the ball contained in the penalty space. Captain Rasheedat Ajibade transformed the penalty to make it 2-1.
Nonetheless, Temwa Chawinga struck once more in added time to revive Malawi’s two-goal benefit along with her second purpose of the night time.
Nigeria refused to surrender, and Uchenna Kanu scored moments later to scale back the rating to 3-2 after ending from shut vary.
The Tremendous Falcons pushed for a dramatic equaliser within the closing seconds, however Malawi defended effectively to safe a historic victory.
The defeat leaves Nigeria beneath stress forward of their subsequent Group C match towards Zambia on Saturday. With Zambia boasting attacking stars Barbra Banda and Racheal Kundananji, the Tremendous Falcons will want a significantly better defensive show if they’re to maintain their title defence alive.
For Malawi, it was a memorable night time because the debutants introduced themselves on the continental stage with a well-known victory over Africa’s most profitable ladies’s nationwide crew.
