Falcons won’t make China mistake against England – Oparanozie

In the build-up to the round of 16 clash against England at the ongoing World Cup jointly hosted by Australia and New Zealand, Super Falcons striker Desire Oparanozie has warned that the Africans won’t make the same mistake as China, the European champions’ last opponents.

Nigeria face England in Brisbane on Monday the Lang Park with a chance of making it to the quarter-final of the competition.

The 11-time champions remain unbeaten so far at the World Cup with two draws and a win from their group stage.

They came out second in Group B with five points to set up a date with the European champions who won all three of their matches from the group stage.

After unconvincing displays in narrow wins over Haiti and Denmark, England hit form against China with a 6-1 victory in which Lauren James scored twice.

However, the Falcons are undeterred by England’s firepower as Oparanozie has revealed that they have a game plan that can spur them to victory.

“We saw what they (England) did against China, and we watched the game,” Oparanozie told Channels TV.

“We have an idea of how they play, and we are not going to make the same mistake China made. We are working on how to take them on. Hopefully, it will come out in our favour.”

The last time the two countries met in the tournament was in the group stage 28 years ago with the Lionesses edging the contest 3-2 to progress to the knockout stages at the expense of the Falcons.