Key events
18 mins: Nigeria are looking so dangerous in transition. In a flash they turn broken field play into a through-ball with runners charging forward through the middle and the channels. The latest threat is aimed at Kanu, on the left of the box, but as she readies to accept possession she slips and the move breaks down. The Matildas have had plenty of warnings.
17 mins: Nigeria’s turn to enjoy a corner, their first of the night, over on the right. It’s floated over the six-yard line, Arnold flaps unconvincingly, precipitating a scramble that ends with an Australian boot hacking the ball clear. Arnold has been rock solid for the Matildas for many matches, but that was nervy.
15 mins: Nigeria aren’t hanging around in transition. Immediately following a turnover they’re looking for the early central through-ball and it almost works again – the second close call of the night for the Matildas. Once the ball is back in dispute, Vine flattens Ajibade in midfield.
13 mins: This time it’s a near-post delivery that’s headed behind for corner number three. Catley again whips it towards the six-yard box but Nnadozie commands her box well to punch clear. Catley picks up the pieces though, ghosts towards the penalty area and unleashes a fierce left-foot drive that Nnadozie has to dive low to her left to save.
12 mins: Better from Australia, spraying the ball around Lang Park, working the Nigerian defence, until Gorry’s angled cross whacks into the face of Plumptre and out for the second corner of the night.
10 mins: Now Carpenter has to clear a dangerous Nigeria move. Onumonu finds herself between the two Australian centre-backs but the through-ball is just a fraction beyond her stride. From the resulting throw-in, Kanu is gifted acres of space, reaches the byline and whips a cross over, but there’s nobody on the end of it. Nigeria have come to play.
8 mins: Superb long raking diagonal through-ball from Kennedy to Vine on the left, but the Sydney winger’s control lets her down and Nigeria escape. That early direct ball is Gustavsson’s Plan A, and you can see why when such packed international defences are proving so difficult to unlock.
6 mins: Nigeria enjoying a decent spell of possession over on their right. Ajibade has been busy early. Eventually a cross is sent over that a gold head gets to first and the ball is soon at the feet of the rampaging Foord – but she is isolated horribly and is soon closed down by black jerseys. It will be tough to play in transition if Australia don’t get bodies forward in support of the sole striker.
4 mins: Australia are set up with van Egmond in the No 10 role, part of an aggressive forward press. But that press is bypassed with a turnover in midfield and it takes Clare Hunt to cover astutely to deny a Nigerian counterattack that was well supported.
3 mins: Nigeria are struggling to play their way out of defence, with Cooney-Cross and Foord both robbing the underdogs of possession in dangerous areas.
2 mins: Nigeria start with 20 seconds of possession, a spell that ends unceremoniously with Demehin getting her feet in a knot and conceding an unforced throw-in. Soon afterwards Australia have a corner on the right. Catley curls the ball into a throng of players at the top of the six yard box but Nnadozie does well to punch clear.
Kick-off!
Can Australia seal qualification to the knockout phase?
The non-playing Sam Kerr gathers her squad in a huddle for a final pre-match rev-up.
Anthems sung, the two teams remove their warm-up jackets to reveal their technicolour uniforms. Australia are in familiar gold jerseys, green shorts, white socks. Nigeria are in their change kit of black shirts, neon green shorts, and black socks.
The final “oi” heralds the arrival of the two teams onto the field.
The traditional Welcome to Country in Brisbane ends with the same same but different Australian greeting of “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, oi, oi, oi.” The crowd lapped it up.
A mild day in Brisbane is giving way to a cool evening. There’s no rain or wind to report. Lang Park / Brisbane Stadium / Suncorp Stadium is a proper football stadium too, rectangular with four big steep stands. Should be a belting atmosphere.
Kieran Pender
The vibes are building here at Brisbane Stadium (that’s Suncorp Stadium to those not abiding by Fifa’s strict branding rules). The streets around the stadium in central Brisbane are heaving with green and gold-clad fans packing out bars and restaurant (although they’ll need to get a move on with the match due to start very shortly). More than 40,000 were at Brisbane Stadium on Saturday for England v Haiti, and another good turn-out is expected for Brazil v France this weekend. But neither will quite match this sold-out blockbuster clash, with another landmark crowd for the Matildas on home soil.
During Tony Gustavsson’s experimental phase he happened across a midfield partnership of 30-year-old Katrina Gorry and 21-year-old Kyra Cooney-Cross. Australia’s engine room has powered on all cylinders ever since.
Still time to laugh with Squires.
Esther Staubli from Switzerland is tonight’s referee. This is her first appearance at this World Cup. She also refereed at the 2019 and 2015 tournaments. She’s taken charge of two Women’s Champions League finals, and the UEFA Women’s EURO 2017 final.
Her assistants are Katrin Rafalski and Susanne Küng.
Australia are one of the teams with a ticket to that lottery, and a win tonight would send them through to a round-of-16 clash with England or Denmark.
Anything other than a Matildas win against Nigeria makes the final day of group play incredibly interesting.
Nigeria facing off with an Ireland already eliminated and if they won that Canada against Australia would become winner takes all. pic.twitter.com/6cm45k1CjE
— Joey Lynch (@joeylynchy) July 26, 2023
Speaking of the US, they had to battle hard for a draw earlier on against the Netherlands. They have clearly come back to, or have been caught by, the pack. Predicting the eventual winner of this World Cup feels like a lottery.
Over in Group E, Portugal have just beaten Vietnam. Next up for them is a winner-takes-all clash with the USA. They couldn’t, could they?
Despite the gulf in expectation at this World Cup, the Matildas are not taking Nigeria lightly, and are wary of the threat the Super Falcons pose on the counter attack. Although, given the starting XI, that threat might not arrive until late in the game.
Here’s Nigeria’s arrival into Lang Park, in case you haven’t caught it yet.
Peeking behind the scenes at what the players get up to in their hotels when they’re not training or playing is a staple of major tournaments. Kieran Pender tells the tales of table tennis, toddlers, and TV.
While we enjoy the coverage of Nigeria’s squad singing and dancing their way into the Lang Park changing rooms, there’s still time to catch up with the latest Women’s Football Weekly.
Not a novel observation, but it is so heartwarming seeing the level of support for @TheMatildas on the walk to the stadium tonight. All ages, all genders. For all the talk of the impact of the team on young girls, I think the impact on young boys is profound. Football as football
— Kieran Pender (@KieranPender) July 27, 2023
“Soccer fans all over Australia will be rocking if the local darlings get the win tonight,” emails Ezra Finkelstein. “Seeing so much goodwill and support for the Matildas – now all they have to do is perform, score one goal and they can begin preparations for the knockout stages and see how they prevent any more non-game injuries.”
Three points tonight certainly gives Tony Gustavsson room to breathe next week against Canada.
Nigeria XI
It’s not only Australia that can do selection bombshells. Nigeria’s standout player and Barcelona star Asisat Oshoala is not in the starting XI. There will be a few Matildas defenders breathing sighs of relief at that news. The dangerous Francisca Ordega also drops to the bench, and Deborah Abiodun is suspended. It remains to be seen if this is part of a grand plan, or whether something else is afoot.
Australia XI
Just the one change for the Matildas, with Emily van Egmond somewhat of a surprise replacement for Mary Fowler. The selection of Van Egmond, an experienced ball-playing midfielder, indicates Caitlin Foord will lead the line on her own, with support coming from the width of Hayley Raso and Cortnee Vine.
Tonight will be just the third time in the last five years that one of Sam Kerr or Mary Fowler will not be in the lineup.
Kieran Pender sets the scene from the camp of the discombobulated hosts, who are now without three of the four central attacking options in their squad.
Arsenal’s Caitlin Foord is almost certain to start up front, with Hayley Raso and Cortnee Vine on the wings. But with Fowler missing and no like-for-like replacement, Gustavsson may instead shake up the midfield – opting for either youth in Alex Chidiac or experience in the form of Emily van Egmond. Tameka Yallop could also bring attacking potency, although is unlikely to play a full match as she returns from a thigh injury. If Gustavsson opts for a wider overhaul, Everton’s Clare Wheeler may be brought in to anchor the midfield.
Preamble
Jonathan Howcroft
Hello everybody and welcome to live coverage of Australia v Nigeria from Brisbane Stadium (also known as Lang Park). Kick-off in Match 22 of World Cup 2023 is 8pm AEST / 11am BST.
As Oscar Wilde might have written: to lose one striker may be regarded as a misfortune, but to lose three looks like carelessness. But Australia head into their second clash of their home World Cup without Sam Kerr, Kyah Simon, or Mary Fowler. How they cope with such adversity during 90 minutes of action against Nigeria will reveal plenty about the Matildas’ World Cup ambitions.
“Sometimes you’re unlucky and you need to deal with the cards you are handed,” reflected coach Tony Gustavsson. “We’re ready to play those cards. We have a lot of attacking options still in the roster, but this team has also showed that we’re adaptable.”
Australia will need all that adaptability to break down a Nigeria side that held Olympic gold medallists Canada goalless in their opening match. With the Canadians downing Ireland yesterday, any result other than a Matildas win tonight sets up a tense final round of action.
Nigeria will fancy their chances on the break, with Asisat Oshoala and Francisca Ordega tailor made for hitting a transitional defence at speed. But the Super Falcons have a crucial attacking absentee of their own, with young star Deborah Abiodun suspended after being shown a late red card against Canada.
I’ll be back with team news and insights from the two camps shortly. If you want to get in touch at any point you can always send me an email.