BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — Asisat Oshoala had to watch from Nigeria’s bench for an hour, desperate to get into the action, before getting a chance to unleash all her pent up energy against co-host Australia at the Women’s World Cup.
The Barcelona striker entered the game in the 63rd minute and Nigeria took the lead two minutes later for the first time, 2-1. Within nine minutes, Oshoala scored a goal that sealed an upset victory, sparked her jersey-shedding celebration and left Australia in a must-win scenario for World Cup survival.
After losing 3-2, an Australian squad dealing with injuries to striker Sam Kerr and understudy Mary Fowler needs to beat Olympic champion Canada in Melbourne on Monday to control its own fate for a spot in the round of 16.
Nigeria and Canada opened with a 0-0 draw and both teams now have four points. Australia has three from its opening 1-0 win over Ireland. Nigeria next faces winless Ireland, which is making its debut in the tournament.
Nigeria coach Randy Waldrum said he benched Oshoala at the start of the game to manage her long-term injury, but always intended to send her on when it was most needed.
“She’s such a force physically,” Waldrum said. “She can create problems — the third goal was massive. When we talked about her role — she’s like any player, she wants to be on all the time — I said ‘I just have a feeling, come on for the last 30 minutes and make a difference.’”
What a feeling.
The pivotal moment against the injury-plagued Australians was in the 72nd minute when Oshoala swooped on a defensive mixup and beat three Matildas to the ball, sneaking a right-foot inside the near post from a tight angle.
She peeled off her jersey and sprinted to the right corner to celebrate scoring in three consecutive World Cups, getting a yellow card in the process.
“I’m so proud of these players. So many people didn’t believe,” Waldrum said. “Didn’t believe in me, in the team.
“I told them after the match, keep believing.”
That’s something the Australians need now.
“This was a massive opportunity that we let slide,” Steph Catley, who is leading the Matildas in the absence of Kerr, said in her post-match TV interview. “We created a lot of opportunities that we couldn’t finish. We weren’t patient enough, and we weren’t clinical.
“(Nigeria) was great on the counter and they finished their chances,” Catley added. “We’ve just got to move on as quickly as possible — on to Canada now. This is what World Cups are all about.”
After controlling much of the game, Australia was stunned by the two-goal burst from Nigeria.
Australia went into the game with 10 wins in its previous 11 international matches, including an away win over European champion England, and had seven clean sheets in their previous nine games.
They had more shots on goal (28-10) and more on target (8-5) but missed the clinical finish of its world-class strikers and was rarely able to breach Nigeria’s disciplined defense.
Australia dominated possession throughout the first half and had 10 shots on goal to one, but it was tied 1-1 at halftime after the teams traded goals in stoppage time.
Emily van Egmond scored the opener for Australia and Uchenna Kanu equalized seconds before halftime when she tapped in a floating, deflected cross from to the blue-haired Rasheedat Ajibade.
Oshoala replaced Kanu in a double switch for the Nigerian attack swung the momentum of the game.
Nigeria scored from a corner with three players heading the ball in sequence, starting with Michelle Alozie and going recalled midfielder Ajibade, who angled it across for veteran Uchiobe Ohale beside the post.
Ohale nodded it in and took the brunt of Alanna Kennedy’s attempted clearance kick simultaneously.
The Australians threw everything into attack in front of a parochial 49,156 crowd but only managed to pull one goal back with Kennedy’s header deep in added time.
The Matildas have generated unprecedented exposure for women’s soccer in Australia and were widely expected to reach the knockout rounds. Now coach Tony Gustavsson has to turn around an upset quickly.
“When it’s as tough as it is now,” he said, “that’s when the true strength comes out in the team.”
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