Continental giants clash in Wafcon 2024 semi-finals

BBC News

5 days ago

There are two intriguing semi-final clashes in store at the 2024 Women's Africa Cup of Nations (Wafcon) in Morocco on Tuesday.First up, nine-time champions Nigeria have a mouth-watering tie against defending champions South Africa in Casablanca at 16:00 GMT.Then, in Rabat, hosts Morocco face Ghana, the lowest-ranked side remaining, at 19:00 GMT.There is still a chance we could see a repeat of the 2022 final, when Banyana Banyana beat the Atlas Lionesses 2-1, back in the capital on Saturday evening.Form and expectation would point towards a meeting between Nigeria and Morocco, while an all-West African affair could add an extra element to a tournament that has already provided plenty of talking points.Morocco and Ghana would be first-time winners, while the Confederation of African Football has doubled the prize pot for the victors to $1m and also unveiled a new trophy.
A rivalry renewed
Nigeria delivered a statement to the rest of the continent when they thrashed much-fancied Zambia 5-0 in Casablanca in the last eight.Former Super Falcons striker Desire Oparanozie described the scoreline as "unexpected" but saw a vast improvement from their outings from the group stage."The Super Falcons have that winning mentality - they show up for big games," she told Sportsworld on the BBC World Service."They showed who the African giant really is."The onus is now on the West Africans to back up that comprehensive performance against another of the continent's top sides when they return to the Larbi Zaouli Stadium."We hope to keep this mentality," goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie told the BBC World Service."Big games define Nigeria."While they are yet to concede in their quest for a record-extending 10th Wafcon crown - a bid that has been dubbed Mission X - South Africa will pose the most difficult challenge yet.The holders squeezed past Senegal 4-1 on penalties after a 0-0 draw and have had 24 hours less to recover from those exertions – as well as travelling west from the city of Berkane.However, Banyana Banyana coach Desiree Ellis says her players will not use that as an excuse."One hundred and 20 minutes with a day less to prepare, with a day to travel, takes a lot out of you."But I don't have enough words to describe this team: the resilience, the courage, the never-say-die attitude, the willing to fight for each other."Nigeria got the better of South Africa in the Wafcon final in both 2000 and 2018, but Ellis' side triumphed 2-1 when they met in the group stage three years ago."They are the defending champions and the pressure is really on them," Oparanozie said."The rivalry has been on for years and the semi-final is going to be a tough one for Nigeria."The Mission X agenda has been pushed. South Africa seemed to be the only team that would actually prevent Nigeria from achieving that."
Atlas Lionesses eye return to final
The tournament hosts remain on track for a second successive appearance in the final after easing past Mali 3-1.Another fervent home crowd at the 21,000-capacity Olympic Stadium is expected in the capital to cheer on the Atlas Lionesses."The public that has come to the stadium has helped us from the first moment," coach Jorge Vilda said."It has always been like that and we hope it will be the same in the semi-final. What we have in our head is the intention to reach the final."Ghana are back in the last four for the first time since 2016, having overcome Algeria on penalties after a scrappy 0-0 draw on Saturday.Their coach Kim Lars Bjorkegren is not fazed by the likelihood of a partisan crowd and thinks his side could feed off any nerves amongst the home fans."It can help you if you have a good day as a home country, but I know it can be the opposite," the Swede said."I know how quiet it can be, even if you are 21,000 or whatever you will be. If we score a goal, the boost it will give us will be huge, and you can change how you think about the situation."We know they have quality, but like all teams they have their weaknesses as well."Vilda is aiming for his second major trophy after guiding Spain to the Women's World Cup in 2023.According to Moroccan journalist Saad Moufakkir, the 44-year-old has added extra layers to the North Africans' game since his appointment in October 2023."He brings the Spanish vibe and now we are better as a unit," he said."We are confident we can finish games earlier. With this coach, especially on the tactical level, I think we have a lot of weapons."We can attack from the wings, we can go through the middle and we can press high or sit back and wait for the counters. We have got options and I think this is the biggest impact [he had on] the national team."