Nigeria goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie, who has played her club football in Paris since 2020, is understandably keen to help her country qualify for this year’s Women’s Olympic Football Tournament.
Representing one’s country at the Olympic Games is a natural objective for the majority of sportswomen. As far as Chiamaka Nnadozie is concerned, it is more than a simple goal – it is a persistent and symbolic dream, FIFA reports.
This is because, contrary to most global athletes making their way to Paris in a few months’ time, the Nigeria goalkeeper, were she to qualify, would be performing in the city that she has called home since 2020.
For the past four seasons, she has donned the jersey of a fast-improving and exciting Paris FC side, who compete in France’s Division 1 Feminine.
But if the Super Falcons’ shot-stopper is to perform at this summer’s Olympic Football Tournament, she and her team-mates must first overcome the considerable challenge of Cameroon in the third round of CAF qualifiers for Paris 2024.
The first leg of the tie will take place on Friday 23 February in Douala, with the Nigerians at home for the second leg three days later.
“The upcoming matches against Cameroon will be pretty difficult,” said Nnadozie in an exclusive interview with FIFA.com. “They’ve got a really good side that’s full of experienced players. We’ll need to be wary, but I’ve got a lot of confidence in my team.”
The Nigerians will likely take heart from their clash with Cameroon at the 2022 CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, which also served as the qualifying campaign for the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023™. In the quarter-finals, their closely contested 1-0 victory in Casablanca not only eliminated Les Lionnes Indomptables, but it also secured an automatic qualification berth at Australia & New Zealand 2023.
“That win was great, but we shouldn’t pay too much attention to our previous results against them,” remarked the 23-year-old goalkeeper. “We’ll have to stay focused, train more intensely, work harder and stick together. If we do all that, we’ll beat them, I suspect.”
Nnadozie has had a busy time of it since that crucial game in July 2022. At the 2023 Women’s World Cup, Nigeria came within a penalty shoot-out of knocking out England in the round of 16, after holding the eventual finalists to a 0-0 draw.
In Australia, the Super Falcons’ last line of defence excelled on the global stage, exemplified by her Player of the Match award in the goalless draw with Canada during the group stage. “What happened over there was amazing,” she said. “I realised quite a few dreams.”
At club level, as part of a formidable Paris FC team, Nnadozie has also played a starring role, helping to upset powerhouses Arsenal and Wolfsburg on the way to securing a spot in the UEFA Women’s Champions League group stage for the first time.
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“I’d always fantasised about playing in the Champions League,” she explained. “We tried our best last season, but it didn’t work out. This year, we made it and that made me so happy. It’s a different level.
We had to concentrate hard – I did everything I could so that my team could get as far as possible. I hope that we can get back there again next season.”
Going head-to-head with elite players such as Sam Kerr (Chelsea), Olga Carmona (Real Madrid) and Elin Rubensson (Hacken) was an educational experience for all concerned at PFC, according to Nnadozie.
“Personally, I learned so much from it; those matches will clearly be of benefit for me for the rest of my career,” said the Nigerian keeper, whose forthcoming targets include reaching the French Cup final and possibly springing a surprise in the D1 Feminine play-offs.
On 11 December last year, the highly regarded custodian’s status received another boost when she was named CAF Women’s Goalkeeper of the Year at a glittering CAF Awards ceremony, during which her compatriots Victor Osimhen and Asisat Oshoala also received the equivalent accolades for outfield players.
“It was an incredible feeling to be handed that trophy,” she said. “It was a huge deal for me and my family. It gave me the strength to keep working hard.”
She continued: “Knowing that people continue to keep tabs on me, no matter where I’m playing, really motivated me. I told them that I was just getting started, that I was going to keep at it and make my club and national team proud of me.
I also said that the trophy wasn’t just for me, but that it was for all the girls and goalkeepers that I play alongside. The award shows that hard work can make dreams come true.”
Her more immediate aspirations involve getting a step closer to the Olympic Games. “Playing at the Games would also be a dream for me,” she confirmed. “I’ve read so much stuff about the Olympics.
We didn’t manage to qualify in 2020, and at first I was a bit down about it, but then I told myself that I still had lots of years ahead of me, and now we’ve got this fantastic new opportunity to qualify. I want to know what it feels like to take part in the Games.”
In the dressing room, Nnadozie and the other younger players within the national squad are often regaled with tales and memories by another goalkeeper, the experienced Tochukwu Oluehi.
In fact, the 36-year-old was involved the last time Nigeria appeared at the Women’s Olympic Football Tournament, in 2008.
“I love it when she tells us stories and gives us advice about things – she’s very insistent about the importance of qualifying for the Games,” said Nnadozie, who is too young to remember her country making three consecutive appearances at the Olympics between 2000 and 2008. “She says it’s an amazing competition. All of her anecdotes give me an even greater desire to take part in it.”
Handed the No1 jersey prior to a 2019 Women’s World Cup group match in Grenoble, Nnadozie has long enjoyed a special relationship with France, and is hopeful of competing at Paris 2024 between 24 July and 11 August, when the eyes of the world will be on the city.
“There are three or four of us in the national team who play for French clubs,” said the talented African. “Everyone’s really happy that the Games are being held in France. Even my club team-mates have been saying to me, ‘Please, Maka, make sure you qualify so that we can come and cheer you on!’”
She concluded: “France is like a home away from home for me, and I’m delighted that the tournament is taking place there.
I really want to play in it, in my adopted country and city. Paris is an incredible place; it’s so beautiful, and the people are great. I feel so at home there.
Sometimes I even feel like I’m back in Nigeria, because everything I need is there. It would be really disappointing to miss out on Paris 2024.”
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