Canadian women to play Nigeria in closed-door training match ahead of Olympics

Canada will face 36th-ranked Nigeria on Wednesday in a closed-door training match in Marbella, Spain, in the final tune-up for Bev Priestman’s team before it opens defence of its women’s soccer title at the Paris Olympics.

Canada Soccer had previously announced the closed-door fixture but didn’t reveal the opponent until Monday.

The eighth-ranked Canadian women, who opened camp in Spain on July 4, edged No. 12 Australia 2-1 on Saturday in Marbella. That was a Tier 2 match that doesn’t count toward ranking or statistics, because there was no limit for substitutions or windows for subs.

Canada opens Group A play at the Olympics on July 25 against No. 28 New Zealand before facing No. 2 France on July 28, and No. 22 Colombia on July 31. Nigeria will play in Group C with No. 1 Spain, No. 7 Japan and No. 9 Brazil.