2026 U-17 WWC: Brazil Coach Rilany Laments Defeat To Flamingos

Brazil U-17 women’s head coach Rilany Silva has attributed her side’s 3-1 defeat to Nigeria’s Flamingos to costly technical errors in their semi-final clash at the ongoing 2026 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in Rabat on Wednesday.

The Seleção struggled to match Nigeria’s physicality and technical quality as the Flamingos secured a convincing victory to book their place in the final.

After a goalless first half, Nigeria stepped up their performance after the break, with Queen Joseph opening the scoring before Awawu Bashiru netted twice to complete the victory. Greise Kelly scored a late consolation goal for Brazil.

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Rilany Rues Defeat To Nigeria

Rilany said her players were punished for making too many mistakes, particularly in simple passes, against a physically stronger opponent.

“Just like against Ghana, when you make technical mistakes against teams that are more physical than those we are used to facing, you will pay for that. Against Ghana, we made a lot of mistakes in simple passes, and that happened again today,” Rilany told FIFA.

“We suffered because of it. These are teams that defend and attack with two blocks and offer a lot of space inside the pitch. But we couldn’t take advantage of that because of these errors. We suffered a lot from the transitions and counter-attacks.”

Brazil will now turn their attention to Saturday’s third-place playoff, where they will face North Korea as they look to end their World Cup campaign on a positive note.

By Adeboye Amosu

Adeboye Amosu is a seasoned sports journalist and Senior Content Writer with extensive experience covering Nigerian football and international football. He specializes in the Nigeria Premier Football League (NPFL), provides insightful coverage, match reports, news, and analysis of the domestic game. Adeboye also follows the Super Eagles of Nigeria and Chelsea, bringing his knowledge of the teams, players, and competitions to his writing.