Benin U-17 women's head coach Idah Azonsou has expressed confidence that her side can overturn their first-leg deficit against Nigeria's Flamingos despite suffering a 3-2 defeat in the opening leg of the final qualifying round for the 2026 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup, Nigeriasoccernet.com reports.
The Young Amazons will host the return leg on Saturday, July 11, at the Stade de Kégué in Lomé, with Azonsou insisting the race for qualification remains wide open.
Although disappointed by the result, the Benin coach praised her players for their determination and performance against one of Africa's strongest teams at the age-grade level.
"First of all, it was a very difficult match. We all know that Nigeria are one of the best teams in West Africa and on the continent at this age level. We took the lead, they came back to go ahead, then we equalised at 2-2 before conceding a third goal," Azonsou said after the match.
"I want to congratulate my players. I am satisfied with their performance. They played well against an experienced team. However, we made a few mistakes that cost us goals. Those are areas we will work on and correct. The first leg is over, but qualification is still open. There are still 90 minutes to play."
Azonsou acknowledged that defensive lapses proved costly but believes her side can learn from the encounter and improve ahead of the decisive second leg.
The Benin coach also drew confidence from her team's impressive home record during the qualifiers, insisting the Young Amazons have what it takes to complete the comeback in front of their supporters.
"As I said, this was only the first leg. We have seen Nigeria's strengths, but we have also identified the areas where we need to improve. We will work on what didn't go well today so that we can approach the return leg in much better conditions," she added.
"Everything is still possible. We are still in the race, and we have another 90 minutes in Lomé to try and secure qualification."
Nigeria hold a slender advantage heading into the return fixture, with the winner on aggregate earning a place at the 2026 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup.