Norway 4-4-2 (Hjelmseth – Wold, Mjelde, Thorisdottir, Minde – Hansen, Risa, Engen, Reiten – Utland, Herlovsen)

Nigeria 4-4-2 (Oluehi – Ohale, Michael, Ebi, Ebere – Ordega, Ayinde, Okobi, Chikwelu – Oparanozie, Oshoala)

Norway eased to victory in their opening game courtesy of some terrible defensive play from Nigeria, which we will analyse here.

Norway’s attacking approach involved building through the thirds with short passes. Their full-backs pushed on down the flanks, while the wingers – Hansen and Reiten – looked to come inside and between the Nigerian midfield and defensive lines. Nigeria tried, unsuccessfully, to counter this by defending in a 4-4-2 mid-block with man-oriented coverage.

The two Norwegian midfielders, Engen and Risa, stayed deep and would receive from the centre-backs. This would provoke a Nigerian midfielder to move up and press them. At the same time, Hansen and Reiten would move behind the Nigerian midfielders to receive through passes. This was an issue Nigeria failed to cope with throughout the match – their central midfielders were unable to simultaneously press those in front of them whilst blocking off passing lanes to those positioned behind them.

An alternative route through Nigeria’s first two defensive lines was for Herlovsen to drop off the front line and occupy the space between the lines. She was often left to wander by the Nigerian centre-backs, allowing her to receive freely and easily.

Nigeria’s wingers appeared unsure of where to be defensively, and were often caught between staying in position to track the Norway full-backs’ forward movement down the flanks, and stepping in to cover Hansen and Reiten. This confusion, along with the central midfielders stepping up to close down Engen and Risa, led to wide open spaces that were easily played through by the Norwegians.