WAFCON: Hosts Morocco face record champions Nigeria at final hurdle
Pedigree of nine-time winners collides with boisterous home support as electric climax to tournament awaits
At long last, the 2024 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) will draw to a close on Saturday, no less than a year later than originally intended. For fans of the host nation Morocco, it might just prove to have been worth the wait - depending on how the last match goes. Morocco are in the final once again, still seeking their first major international trophy. Their opponents this time are the real boss of women’s football in Africa – record WAFCON champions Nigeria.
The two sides will face off at 8pm local time amid what promises to be an electric atmosphere at the Olympic Stadium in Rabat.
Morocco keen to go one step further
Hosting the WAFCON for the very first time in 2022, Morocco impressed fans and neutrals alike with a memorable run to the final. To most, the Atlas Lionesses were an entirely unknown quantity having not made a major tournament appearance since 2000. Through their excellent performances and results, they quickly grew into household names around the country and drew as many as 60,000 fans to the stadium on the big nights. Of course, they did not get their fairy-tale ending then as South Africa emerged 2-1 victors, but the pain of that defeat would make a victory this year even sweeter.
If nothing else, that game also gave the squad some much-needed experience, as captain Ghizlane Chebbak pointed out in the pre-match press conference. “In the last final, we lacked experience. Now, the team has improved”, she said. “We have reached the final on merit and are going to take advantage of the fact that we are playing at home to try and get the trophy.”
While all representatives of Morocco’s team have voiced their gratitude to the fans for their boisterous support, there can be no denying that the crowd has impacted performances both ways. Sure, they can help sustain the highs and build serious spells of pressure when momentum is with their side, but a quiet or dissatisfied crowd can also have an undesirable effect.
This was perhaps best encapsulated in the semi-final against Ghana. After a sub-par start, the home side started to lose the crowd and went on to concede around the half-hour mark. However, they came out much better after the half-time break and the volume increased accordingly as they scored an equaliser and looked slightly more likely to grab a winner. In the end, their penalty-takers did an exceptional job of holding their nerve, while the fans’ hostilities quite possibly had an impact on a couple of the Ghanaian youngsters, who failed to convert.
Against a powerhouse like Nigeria, Morocco may well enjoy the full benefit of their home advantage without feeling too much pressure as they seek to create history.
Nigeria hitting their stride at the right time
Nigeria have generally flattered to deceive over the course of this tournament. While they managed to get through the group stage without conceding even once, most of their performances looked rather disjointed and certainly not befitting nine-time champions. Many regarded their 5-0 quarter-final win over Zambia as a much-needed flick of the switch, but in truth the scoreline was kind to them as they were able to convert nearly half of their 11 attempts.
At the very least, though, that game illustrated the destructive potential of the Super Falcons. There were more promising signs to be seen in the semi-final against defending champions South Africa, when they got off to a great start and took a deserved lead by half-time. However, they tailed off thereafter and once again looked quite passive, ultimately only advancing thanks to a fortuitous stoppage-time winner.
Interim head coach Justin Madugu has been constantly tweaking things in a bid to get the best out of his side. He has changed some part of the attacking lineup in every match so far, even going as far as benching six-time African Women’s Footballer of the Year Asisat Oshoala. That actually looks to have been a good decision, as the more ball-to-feet forward Esther Okoronkwo has registered four goal involvements in the knockouts.
“We are trying to get the best out of everybody. We do have our own gameplan, and we look at the opposition to determine who starts, who comes on and what happens. Depending also how the game goes, [it] informs the decisions that we have to take,” he said.
Nigeria have to back themselves against any African side as they certainly have the player quality to beat them all. This time, though, putting together a consistently cohesive side is still proving to be a challenge, but there is no better time to get things fully right than in the final.
Historical pedigree favours Nigeria - but there’s hope for hosts
Three-quarters of all WAFCON titles to date have gone to Nigeria. They were nine-time champions going into this, the 13th edition of the tournament. Even more impressively, the Super Falcons have never lost a final. The completion of their ‘Mission X’ – a perfect 10 – would take them ahead of the United States and China as the outright most successful nation on the planet in a continental championship.
Even against such daunting opponents, Morocco can take some signs of encouragement. For one, the Atlas Lionesses emerged victorious in their previous meeting in the 2022 semi-final, albeit only on penalties. Moreover, two of the three WAFCON tournaments Nigeria have failed to win have gone to the hosts, with the exception being the last edition.
Regardless of what conclusions you draw from those stats in terms of expected results, a cracking contest between two very closely-matched teams certainly looks to be on the cards.
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