Plumptre is thrilled as the Super Falcons squad lands in a France for friendly match

Saudi Arabia-based defender Ashleigh Plumptre can’t hide her excitement after she was included in the Super Falcons’ squad for the international friendly against France.

Plumptre, 25, was sidelined for a long spell after sustaining an ACL injury earlier in the year.

The centre-back was left out of the Super Falcons’ squad for the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris after failing to recuperate on time from the injury.

The former Leicester City Ladies star was however named in a 20-player roaster by interim head coach, Justine Madugu for the clash with Les Bleues on Sunday.

An elated Plumptre took to social media to celebrate her return to the team.

“Feels great to have made the Super Falcons list for the upcoming international games. Good opportunity to fight for the badge again,” Plumptre wrote on social media.

Meanwhile, the players and officials of nine-time African champions Nigeria have started arriving in the city of Angers, France from Wednesday morning, ahead of Saturday’s much-anticipated international friendly game between the Super Falcons and the Les Bleues.

It is the second time both teams will engage in a friendly encounter – the first being a forgettable experience for the Falcons as they lost by eight goals in freezing weather inside Le Mans’ Stade Marie-Marvingt on 6th April 2018.

Only goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie, who plays her club football in France, and Mexico-based defender Osinachi Ohale, remain from that squad that was undone by, among other things, a hat-trick from Valérie Gauvin and an own goal by defender Faith Ikidi-Michael. The defeat equalled the Falcons’ biggest-ever defeats – by Norway at the 1995 FIFA World Cup finals in Sweden and by Germany in a friendly in Leverkusen’s Bay Arena on 25th November 2010.

However, clashes at the FIFA World Cup finals have been much closer, with the Falcons losing by the odd goal against the Les Bleues in Germany in 2011, and by the same margin at the Roazhon Park when both sides clashed at the 2019 finals hosted by France.

The consummation of Saturday’s encounter is further confirmation of the Ibrahim Musa Gusau-led administration’s commitment to fully blood a new Super Falcons’ squad, by implementing a process of exposure and experience-garnering for the new squad, following an under-par outing at the Women’s Olympic Football Tournament in France this summer.

The big game with the Les Bleues comes up only five weeks after the first of two friendly matches with Algeria’s Green Ladies in Nigeria (2-0 and 4-1 wins), and eight days after the Super Falcons learnt they would be playing Tunisia, Algeria and Botswana in the group phase at the 13th Women AFCON in Morocco next summer.

Saturday’s match will commence at 9.30 pm France time, the same time as in Nigeria.