A looping Alexia Putellas free-kick five minutes from time sent Spain into the women’s quarter-finals following a 1-0 victory against Nigeria at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games Group C match at Stade de la Beaujoire on Sunday in Nantes, France.
Spain had struggled to find a way past their Group C opponents with striker Salma Paralluelo having a second-half goal disallowed.
Paralluelo went close on several other occasions and Putellas had an effort cleared off the line as the game looked destined to end goalless.
However, Nigeria conceded a needless free-kick which Putellas looped over stranded goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie to seal the win.
Spain top Group C with six points from two games and have qualified for the knockout round before facing Brazil in their final group game.
The defeat was the Falcons’ second in the competition, following their first-game loss to Brazil.
Randy Waldrum, Falcons head coach, made changes to the line-up that started the previous match.
Asisat Oshoala led the attack in place of Chinwendu Ihezuo, while Esther Okoronkwo started ahead of Jeniffer Echegini.
The overhaul did little to mitigate the bluntness of the team’s attack, as they struggled to convert the few chances they had amid the Spanish domination.
The world champions overwhelmed the Falcons, and the Spaniard had struck over 10 shots toward Chiamaka Nnadozie before halftime.
Falcons managed to nick a couple of chances from the onslaught, but Rasheedat Ajibade buckled and lost the ball after Oshoala had sent her free on a counterattack.
Salma Paralluelo thought she had put Spain ahead early in the second half after stabbing the ball past Nnadozie from a freekick. However, after a VAR review, her effort was later ruled offside.
But Putellas cemented the victory with a touch of brilliance after floating in an 85th-minute freekick which wrong-footed Nnadozie.
Meanwhile, Nigeria’s Super Falcons are pointless and will play Japan in their final game of the group, and they must get at least victory to stand a chance of progressing as one of the two best third-placed teams.
