Super Falcons head coach Justin Madugu says he is not worried about losing his position after Nigeria failed to qualify for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup.
Nigeria’s hopes of featuring at the tournament ended on Thursday following a 2-1 defeat to South Africa in the qualifying playoffs.
The loss means Nigeria will miss the Women’s World Cup for the first time since the competition was introduced in 1991.
Speaking to journalists after the defeat, Madugu apologised to Nigerians and accepted responsibility for the team’s failure to secure qualification.
“First of all, I have to apologise to Nigerians over our inability to make it to the World Cup. It was not our intention. We came and did the best that we could, but our best was not good enough,” he said.
“We are very sorry for that, and we take full responsibility for everything that happened,” Madugu added.
The coach was subsequently questioned about calls for him to be dismissed following the disappointing outcome.
“I am not afraid of being sacked. To the glory of God, I have served my country. It was a privilege that was given to me,” Madugu said.
Madugu revealed that he had overseen nearly 28 matches, recording 19 victories, four defeats and four draws. However, he acknowledged that the loss to South Africa came at a particularly important stage.
He attributed the defeat to Nigeria’s failure to convert their opportunities and mistakes in defence.
“We had chances, but conversion was another problem. We also made some little errors at the back, and they capitalised on that and got their goals,” he said.
Madugu also suggested that complacency and overconfidence could have played a role in the mistakes that proved costly.
“It could be complacency, it could also be overconfidence, and then we end up making mistakes over unnecessary issues,” he added.
The coach further admitted that the Super Falcons were not clinical enough in front of goal despite creating several opportunities throughout the tournament.
“We have not been clinical in front of goal. We create several chances, but we are very wasteful with the opportunities that come our way,” he said.
According to Madugu, Nigeria had enough opportunities in the first half to put the match beyond South Africa, but failed to make them count.
“South Africa were more clinical and converted the chances that came their way,” Madugu added.