Nigeria women's football team, the Falcons, opens their campaign in the FIFA Women's World Cup on Tuesday in Chengdu, China, against Sweden.
Local media reported in Lagos that at the 2003 edition, the Falcons lost 3-0 to the Swedes.
Four years might have passed but the Swedes remain among the top teams in women's football, though they are undoubtedly weakened by the absence of several regulars and by persisting worries over the talismanic but injury-prone Ljungberg.
Nigeria on the other hand is going from strength to strength, bolstered by a new generation of players of whom great things are expected.
The last match between these two teams brought a 2-1 win for the Swedes at the 2004 Women's Olympic Football Tournament, so all the signs point to an evenly-matched and entertaining encounter at the Chengdu Sports Center Stadium.
With the United States and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) also lurking, Group B is widely considered the tournament's most competitive one and Nigeria and Sweden know that defeat would be costly to their hopes of qualifying for the quarterfinals.
A win, on the other hand, would provide the perfect platform on which to build against the U.S.and the DPRK. While Sweden's experience would seem to give the country a slight edge on paper, the African champion are in buoyant mood and improving fast.
Nigeria has a fully-fit squad based around the players who reached the quarterfinal of the FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup Russia 2006, with much expected of winger Cynthia Uwak, Perpetua Nwocha, Ifeanyi Chiejine, Effiowan Ekpo and Faith Ikidi.
Source: Xinhua
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