Video “I Take Full Responsibility” Coach Madugu’s Emotional Press Conference After 1-0 Loss to Cameroon

Nigeria head coach Justin Madugu has apologized to Nigerians after the Super Falcons' 1-0 defeat to Cameroon in the WAFCON 2026 quarter-final, a result that denied the team automatic qualification for the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup and ended their bid for an 11th continental title in this round of the tournament.

Speaking at the post-match press conference, a visibly emotional Madugu took full responsibility for the outcome, insisting the players had given everything but that the result simply didn't go Nigeria's way.

"I want to apologize to Nigerians over our inability to win today's game, which would have qualified us for the World Cup," Madugu said. "It was not our intention. The ladies did the best that they could, but that's the way the game was designed to go. We apologize, and I take responsibility for that. We still have a second chance, and we will do our best to see what comes out of it."

No Division in the Camp, Madugu Dismisses Talk of Discord

Asked whether tactical substitutions or rumours of unrest, including suggestions that promised match bonuses had affected the players' decision-making late in the game, had played a role in the defeat, Madugu firmly rejected the idea of any rift within the squad.

"To the best of my mind, there's no problem in the camp. There's no division amongst the girls. They are all on the same page, they have been working together, cooperating," he said. "It's just one of those things that can happen in the course of a game."

He addressed a specific late chance where a player opted to shoot rather than pass to a better-placed teammate, putting it down to a split-second decision rather than any deeper issue.

"I'm sure she felt she could score, that was why she made the attempt, and probably would have passed the ball to a teammate who was in a better position. But that is not to say there is any division amongst them," Madugu explained. "In all the games they played, they never created the kind of chances they created today. It's just that the conversion wasn't right, and we weren't precise and clinical with our finishing."

Credit to Cameroon, and a Reassurance for Nigerians

With the loss stirring memories of the men's national team's own World Cup qualification heartbreak, Madugu was pressed on how he intends to reassure supporters that history won't repeat itself. He promised the team would give its all in the playoff route that remains available.

"We still have a second chance, and we'll give it our all to make sure that we do not disappoint and go the same way that the men took. We will do our best and try to get it right to make sure that we go through the playoffs," he said.

The coach was also full of praise for Cameroon, who defended resolutely and made the most of a set-piece to secure the win.

"I would like to give the Cameroonian team credit. I would like to congratulate the Cameroon team on winning their game today," Madugu said. "They came in as one of the best-ranked teams in the tournament, and for today they did the best they could. They defended very well, but in spite of that we still created a lot of chances which, if we had converted, would have made the result different."

Watch: We lost to Cameroon, but we have another chance — Nigeria 0 vs 1 Cameroon, WAFCON 2026

Goalkeeping Question Marks

With Nigeria's goalkeeper at the centre of criticism after another costly error, Madugu was asked whether the team would consider testing other options between the posts before the next match.

"It's quite natural that when things like this happen, you have to do an overall assessment of the team, what went wrong, what did we do well, where did we get it wrong," he said. "There's nothing bad in exploring other players. She has been a wonderful goalkeeper, not only for the national team but even for her club, but anybody can make mistakes at any time, and it could be costly, just as it was costly for us today. That is not to say she's a bad goalkeeper. It's just one of those things that is meant to be."

Searching for a Plan B

Reporters also pushed Madugu on whether Nigeria had a tactical alternative after struggling to break Cameroon down through the middle of the pitch, an area identified as a weakness for the Indomitable Lionesses earlier in the tournament, with most of the Super Falcons' chances instead coming from wide areas.

Madugu insisted the team did have a plan for the middle, but that Cameroon defended that zone effectively on the day.

"It's not as if we didn't have a plan to also go through the middle. The chance Esther got, the final ball came through the middle, not the wing," he said. "They had a good game plan of ensuring they blocked the central area, and we had our own plan of going through the wings. Sometimes games go a certain way, and you just have to take it the way it is. It was not our intention that the game should go the way it went. If we had been more clinical, the result would have been different."

Defensive Frailties: "Work in Progress"

On Nigeria's recurring struggles to keep clean sheets, with largely the same defensive group from previous tournaments now conceding more freely, Madugu acknowledged it remains an unresolved issue the technical team is working to fix.

"It's something that we've been bothered about, we've been worried about it. We've been doing a lot to try and fix it, but like I said, it's just one of those things and we still have to continue to work," he said. "It's a work in progress. As long as there is an opportunity for you to exploit, we cannot afford to relax. We have to go back and continue working to make sure we fix whatever it is that has gotten us into the fix we are currently in."

Eyes on South Africa

Nigeria's World Cup hopes now shift to a playoff against South Africa, and Madugu confirmed the technical team will revisit footage from the tournament to sharpen their approach before that decisive match.

"We get another chance, a playoff against South Africa. We go back, watch all the games, and come up with a plan that will help us, because we cannot afford to drop that second opportunity," he said. "We have to give it all our best. We have to."

For a Super Falcons squad chasing history, the message from the post-match press conference was one of heartbreak tempered by resolve: a painful exit from the quarter-final, but a second chance still very much alive.