Nigeria vs Canada Prediction, FIFA Women’s World Cup Odds

Edgar Chaput
July 19, 2023

A new Women’s World Cup commences. New ambitions, new dramatic tales will unfold, and a new, larger budget to make the 2023 edition potentially the best one yet. As for Group B, the jostling begins when Canada and Nigeria take to the pitch at the Melbourne Rectangular Stadium at 10:00 PM Eastern Standard Time on Thursday night.

Given their respective FIFA rankings, Bev Priestman’s CANWNT are significant -345 favourites on the World Cup odds, whereas Nigeria is behind at +680. A draw is deemed unlikely, priced at +600.

Canada -250
Draw +320
Nigeria +660

Nigeria vs Canada Betting Analysis

Up until recently, the African and North American nations rarely saw each other on the football field. Their last four encounters date back 12 years. The oldest was at the 2011 World Cup when the Super Falcons earned the spoils with a 1-0 victory. Since then there has been a trio of international friendlies in 2019 (Canada 2-1 Nigeria) and back-to-back contests in April 2022. The maple leaf representatives won the first bout 2-0, with the Super Falcons earning a 2-2 draw in the rematch.

The Gulf of Guinea coastal team has known more success at Africa Cup of Nations events than World Cups. When competing against their continental rivals, they’ve won it all an incredible 11 times, most recently in 2018. As for World Cups, it’s been a different story. While they’ve been present at all nine editions, their best finish feels like ages ago in 1999 when they made it to the quarterfinals.

Team Canada has partaken in eight FIFA World Cups but never finished better than fourth. There has been some success in regional championships, albeit not recently. Canada took the CONCACAF Championship in both 1998 and 2010. Olympics, however, have proven to be fertile ground for restoring honour. Canada has won a medal at the past three tournaments, including gold at Tokyo 2020 (delayed to 2021).

Nigeria

Nigeria arrives in Australia with familiarity, a desire to save face, and depth. With respect to familiarity, the team was in a major competition just last year at the Africa Women Cup of Nations where they reached the semifinals, losing to Morocco on penalties. The desire to save face comes from the fact that the Super Falcons typically dominate their African rivals, so finishing fourth was not viewed positively

Depth because they have plenty of firepower to speak of. Ifeoma Onumonu of the NY Gotham FC is one of many talented players who can put the ball in the net for Nigeria. She is supported by Asiat Oshoala (Barcelona), Desire Oparanozie, and Rasheedat Ajibade (Atletico Madrid). That offensive force will need to come alive in Australia. The African nation was blanked twice earlier this year in friendlies before finding its groove with wins over Costa Rica, Haiti, and New Zealand. Balance is key, but that’s also a lot easier said than done. This Nigerian outfit enjoys scoring goals, but they aren’t the best defensive unit. Canada doesn’t lack scoring punch, which could prove to be Nigeria’s undoing.

Canada

All the media hoopla and hype ends now. The 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup begins late Thursday night against an opponent most believe Canada should handle.

As previously stated, 2023 has not been kind to the Canadians. They’re missing key players at this tournament, such as Desiree Scott. The team won’t use that as an excuse, but it certainly makes the challenge of a deep run more difficult. Nevertheless, Christine Sinclair’s experience will help greatly. Moreover, players like Jessie Fleming and Kadeisha Buchanan will be hungry for more glory after getting a taste of it at Tokyo 2020. Adriana Leon could end up playing a key role in how well Canada does. Losing to Nigeria seems unlikely, although the first game in a big tournament can catch even great teams off guard. Just ask the 2022 Argentinian men’s team.