TheCable

Super Falcons of Nigeria need to beat USA in a win-or-bust match in Vancouver to advance to the next round of the 2015 Women’s World Cup.

We look at four things coach Edwin Okon must do to achieve Nigeria’s first win against the Americans in four encounters.

DEFEND SET PIECES

Conceding a goal from a corner kick is bad. Conceding two in a game? Terrible! That was against Sweden but in the game with Australia, the Super Falcons conceded two goals from open play – and that’s an improvement!

But how best can a team defend set pieces?

“When you are marking at set pieces you have to make physical contact, without conceding a foul,” says Gareth Southgate, England U-21 coach.

“Use your arms to try and block your opponent’s run, or affect it so that they can’t move into space. You need a leader to quickly organise; they must make sure everyone is completely switched on and doing their job.

“Get your small players on the posts and possibly covering space, depending on how you set your team up – zonal or man-marking. A mix of the two systems can work well. Put your players that are good in the air on the opposition’s danger men.”

Danger women, Edwin Okon!

PLAY LIKE SWEDEN

Sweden battled USA to a goalless draw and Okon and his coaching crew should have studied how the Scandinavian country pulled it off.

The Americans dominated play for large part of the game, but their final ball was consistently off the mark.

The first good chance for USA came 25 minutes – yes, 25 minutes – into the game, which means, the Super Falcons must stay compact.

“If you’re looking to reduce the space in between the lines of your team, the first thing you have to do is look at your back four and see whether they’re capable of playing higher up the pitch,” Liverpool’s academy director, Alex Inglethorpe, says.

“That’s the easiest way. The flip side of that is if your centre-halves aren’t athletic, then you’ll leave an awful lot of space in behind you. And if your keeper isn’t a great sweeper either, then you’ll be exposed.

“The other way is getting your midfield to sit a bit deeper, or your centre-forwards, to make sure there’s no space behind you. The consequence then is that you need quick forwards because there’s a lot of space in behind the opposition defence then.

“It depends on the makeup of your team. If you have gifted midfielders, they want space, so giving them room between the lines isn’t always such a bad thing.”

MAKE A FAST START

You often hear commentators say:

“If they can get an early goal…

“…it would just settle the nerves.”

The Super Falcons need a flying start that can set the tone for a dominant display and not wait until the team is two goals down!

Getting a head start on your opponents can knock their confidence and crumble a game plan from the start. And what could be more boosting than seeing the heads of Hope Solo and Megan Rapinoe drop early on?

But first things first, though, the Falcons must keep possession.

“To start quickly, the first thing you need is the ball,” Alex Inglethorpe, Asisat Oshoala’s academy director, says.

“So I would encourage my team to press up the pitch and regain the ball as often as we can in the opposition half, and then to be progressive with the ball to capitalise on mistakes.

“You can possibly take risks in the first 10-15 minutes, in terms of counter-attacking and looking for one-v-ones, or isolating a centre-half.

“You need the ball, but you need prolonged periods of possession, so then it’s a case of when you’ve won it high, making good decisions to keep them in their half.”

CREATE SPACE FOR A CROSS

There isn’t a goalkeeper on the planet not even the legendary Hope Solo – that wants to see a cross coming into her box.

A good delivery causes chaos and Okon must instruct his full-backs to bump forward and connect inch-perfect crosses to Desire Oparanozie and Francisca Ordega.

Trying to clear a ball while facing your own goal and holding off a striker is a nightmare for any defence and that of USA won’t be an exception.

But if all else fails…

…use 11 Asisat Oshoalas!