Pakistan delivered a spirited performance but fell to a narrow 1-0 defeat against Mauritania in their FIFA Series clash at the Alassane Ouattara Stadium, Abidjan.Coming off a historic 8-0 win over Turks and Caicos Islands, Pakistan entered the match with confidence and created several scoring opportunities throughout the game.The decisive moment came in the 20th minute when Ramata Gengui struck a superb long-range volley to give Mauritania the lead, as they bounced back strongly from their heavy defeat against Côte d’Ivoire.

Pakistan responded positively, with Nadia Khan fresh from becoming the country’s all-time top scorer testing the goalkeeper early on. Mariam Mahmood and Kayla Siddiqi also came close before halftime but failed to convert. After the break, tactical substitutions injected fresh energy into Pakistan’s attack. Aqsa Mushtaq led the charge with multiple attempts, forcing impressive saves from Mauritania goalkeeper Aissata Fall.

At the other end, goalkeeper Zeeyana Jivraj made a crucial save to deny Mauritania a second goal, keeping Pakistan in contention. Pakistan pushed hard for an equaliser in the closing stages, with late chances falling to Mariam, Isra Khan, and Aqsa Mushtaq. Despite sustained pressure, including eight minutes of added time, the equaliser remained elusive. 

Head coach Adeel Rizki admitted his side started slowly and were second best in the early stages. “We started slowly. We weren’t strong in the beginning. We slowly tried to come into the game but the Mauritania players showed more desire and hunger to win the ball,” he said. He added that missed chances and overconfidence after the previous win played a role in the result. “We will try to work on that and also not miss out on easy chances. 

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP)