Super Falcons coach, Justin Madugu, has revealed how switching tactics midway into the game helped his team overcome hosts Morocco in the final of the African Women’s Nations Cup.
Speaking exclusively to newsmen on Friday during a civic reception held in his honour in Numan, Adamawa State, Madugu said his original game plan failed to match Morocco’s tactics, forcing him to adopt an alternative strategy.
Madugu said, ‘I used the first half of the game to study their tactics of play, so I discovered that my plan B is the solution left for me if I want to win the final match.
‘After the first half, I made very important changes, especially in the midfield, because I know the strength of the Morocco team was in the midfield, so I brought a midfielder who is very fast tactically with the ball.
‘If you watch the match, you can agree that the new midfielder changed the game with ball distribution, so Super Falcons captured the midfield and pushed the Moroccans to their territory, which paved the way for us to start scoring goals’.
On how he felt when the Falcons trailed by two goals in the first half, Madugu said it felt ‘like there was no blood in my body again, but I said for me to lose the match, Morocco must see fire on the pitch.
‘Playing against a host country in the final is not an easy job; crowd support is very important in football, but I must commend Super Falcons players, they have a lion’s heart, the spirit they were playing with encouraged me not to lose hope even when the team was two goals down’.
The traditional ruler of the Bachama Kingdom, His Royal Majesty Dr. Daniel Shaga Ismaila (Hama Bachama), conferred a traditional title on Madugu, praising him for making the kingdom and Nigeria proud.
The monarch encouraged Nigerian youths to take sports seriously, saying modern sports pay more than government jobs.
He said that Madugu has made his kingdom and the entire country proud with the hard-earned victory over the host country, Morocco.
The Hama Bachaman urged youths to shun acts that are unlawful and engage themselves in profitable ventures.
Also, the House of Representatives member representing Numan, Demsa and Lamurde federal constituency on the platform of the Peoples’ Democratic party’s PDP, Mr. Kwamoti Laori, asked the Nigerian football body to confirm Madugu as the substantive coach of the Super Falcons.
He urged the Ministry of Youth and Sports to improve sporting facilities in the country to encourage youth participation in sporting activities.
‘Madugu can bring the World Cup to Nigeria if he is giving the opportunity to handle Super Falcons or the Super Eagles’, he said.
Coach Madugu attended the reception with his wife.
