Nigeria 0-0 Canada: Christine Sinclair saves penalty as gold medalists are held in goalless stalemate in World Cup opening game
- Chiamaka Nnadozie denied Sinclair from the spot early in the second half
- Kailen Sheridan, Nnadozie’s Canadian counterpart, also had a late stop
- DailyMail.com provides all the latest international sports news
Phenomenal goalkeeping performances from Kailen Sheridan and Chiamaka Nnadozie defined a physical match between Canada and Nigeria in Melbourne that ended in a 0-0 draw.
Christine Sinclair went down in the penalty area after being entered by Francisca Ordega and the VAR review resulted in a penalty.
However, the 40-year-old British Columbia’s attempt was stopped by the young goalkeeping phenomenon Nnadozie from Nigeria.
Sinclair, the leading international goalscorer in football history, was eventually knocked out in the 71st minute, only the second time in her long and illustrious World Cup career that she had been knocked out in a game she started.
The game seemingly had a fast pace and intense physicality from the moment the whistle blew.
Chiamaka Nnadozie (16) saved a penalty kick early in the second half to keep Canada a point
Sinclair went down in the penalty area, but the 40-year-old striker was unable to convert her penalty
Kailen Sheridan (1) also had a phenomenal performance between the sticks for Canada
Both sides achieved double figures in shots, with Nigeria’s 11 and Canada’s 16. But the Canadians had a massive 68 percent possession advantage.
Canada had half their shots blocked by a tough Nigerian defense that outscored the Canadians in every key defensive stat.
When the final whistle blew, Nigeria had managed their first goalless draw at the WWC in 26 matches.
Sinclair’s bid to become the oldest goalscorer in WWC history in her sixth appearance at the tournament will have to wait for the next game against Ireland in five days.
In addition to her saved penalty, the 40-year-old also squandered the best chance of the first half when she found herself unmarked on the edge of the box but fired a soaring shot high and wide in the ninth minute.
Nigeria eventually worked their way into the game and Ifeoma Onumonu forced a low save from Kailen Sheridan with a long shot that curled into the bottom corner in the 23rd minute.
It was the only shot on target in the first half, but not because of either side’s lack of willingness to come forward.
Sheridan experienced a nervous moment in the 35th minute when she ran off her line and was unable to field a pass played over the top of the Canadian defense.
Asisat Oshoala was unable to redeem the blunder by jabbing the ball back over the box, and the lucky goalkeeper was saved as Vanessa Giles and Ashley Lawrence jointly cleared the danger.
The second half started in a flurry as Sinclair won the penalty, clipped by Francisca Ordega as she ran away from goal in the box.
Sinclair’s bid to become the oldest goalscorer at a Women’s World Cup will have to wait
Late in the game, Deborah Abiodun got her marching order after a reckless challenge
The penalty was awarded on review and Sinclair stepped up, only to send a tame shot towards the bottom corner.
Nnadozie denied the veteran with a strong left-handed save and blasted away the rebound, much to the delight of the rowdy Nigerian fans in the stands.
Canadian substitute Evelyne Viens got into a brilliant scoring position from close range, but poked a shot straight at Nnadozie in the 65th minute.
Abiodun was sent off deep into stoppage time and Canada couldn’t make the numerical advantage count.