The biennial competition, which began on September 30, will end on October 21. The Flamingoes will play their last match in Group C against table toppers, Korea Democratic Republic, at 2pm Nigerian time.
The Nigerians are seeking their fourth consecutive quarterfinal appearance after reaching the stage in the 2010, 2012 and 2014 editions but will have an uphill task against Korea, who won the competition in 2008.
The Koreans top the group with four points after a 3-3 draw with England in their opening game and a 1-0 win over Brazil in their last match. The Brazilians are second with three points while England have two points to sit third. Nigeria are fourth with one point following a 1-0 loss to Brazil and a barren draw against England on Tuesday.
The four teams in the group have a chance to qualify for the quarterfinals. Despite currently sitting in fourth place, Nigeria could jump to the top of their group with a win against the Koreans, which may end the North Koreans’ campaign in Jordan.
However, the Flamingoes, who have yet to register a goal at the competition, will need to end their goalscoring drought and net their first strike of the tournament if they are to have any chance of progressing.
Also, if Nigeria manage to beat Korea, they will depend on the result between England and Brazil. Irrespective of other results, only a win will be enough to ensure a quarterfinal place at Jordan 2016 for the Young Three Lionesses while Brazil must also aim for victory to be sure of reaching the last eight.
If Brazil and England however play out a draw, the qualifiers from the group may have to be decided by goals differences and head-to-head as three teams, Nigeria, Korea and Brazil, will all be on three points.
Historically, Nigeria and Korea have met once at the U-17 level with the Flamingoes defeating their Korean counterparts 3-2.
Flamingoes coach, Bala Nikyu, said victory in the match is non-negotiable.
“We simply mustn’t go out in the group stages. If you look at our squad and the quality of our players, it’s clear that we have to reach the quarterfinals. We came here with the aim of improving on our performance in Costa Rica two years ago and that has not changed,” he told FIFA.com.
“We played a defensive game against Brazil and we lost because we made a few mistakes that we’ve sorted out now. We were more adventurous against England but there are still a few things we need to iron out before we take on Korea. The players don’t have any experience of these competitions but they’re going to fight hard to try and win it. We can still go through and I think we deserve it.”
But Korea’s striker, Hyang-Sim Sung, believes her team would emulate the 2008 title-winning team.
“I saw the team lift the trophy at the first-ever U-17 Women’s World Cup (in 2008, in New Zealand). It was fantastic for the country and I hope we can achieve the same thing,” she told FIFA.com.
“We didn’t reach the quarterfinals in 2014 but we have more experience now. We came to Jordan with the intention of getting as far as possible. Our main aim is to reach the knockout stages. We’ll see what happens after that. I hope that we’re still here on the last day of the tournament.”
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