Nigeria’s Super Falcons forward, Desire Oparanozie, has announced her decision to retire from country and club football.
Oparanozie made this known on Wednesday morning through her social media handle, wrote, “To my fans, family, and friends, thank you for the show of love and support over the years. It’s time to take a bow, as I believe there’s no better time than now. I’m officially announcing my retirement from professional football for both club and country.
“To every team and coach I have played for, to every mate I’ve played alongside, and to every opponent I have played against, thank you all for being part of this incredible journey. Thank you football, thank you Nigeria.”
Desire Oparanozie played as a forward in the Chinese Women’s Super League for Wuhan Jianghan University.
In April 2019, she was named the new captain of Nigeria by coach Thomas Dennerby who praised Oparanozie for her ‘discipline and good character’.
She captained the Super Falcons in the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup, where she led calls for equal pay in Nigerian football citing disparity with the bonuses received by the team’s male counterparts.
She has also been part of the Nigerian squads of the African Women’s Championship of 2010, 2014, 2016 and 2018, winning all four tournaments. She scored crucial goals in both the 2014 and 2016 finals.
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