Cameroon will face Guinea in their first game of the African Cup of Nations on Monday. Group C has four talented teams, including Senegal and Gambia. They will play each other earlier in the day. It wouldn’t be shocking if three of those teams advanced to the knockout stages.
Preview (Cameroon vs. Guinea)
Before this major event, Cameroon was not well-known. Most spectators anticipated teams like Senegal, Morocco, Egypt, and the host Ivory Coast would compete. Overall, though, the Indomitable Lions may be perfectly content to be merely the eighth-favorite. They won’t be as burdened by the weight of expectation. They are still one of only three nations to have successfully defended the continental title. Cameroon is simply too formidable to write out in any competition, let alone the AFCON.
Furthermore, the Indomitable Lions are the second-most successful nation in the history of this competition. The Pharaohs (seven titles) won their fifth AFCON title in Gabon in 2017 despite being underdogs as well. Cameroon are the only team to have won three AFCON titles in the west of the continent. They also have a reputation for giving their greatest performances in West Africa. They won here in the Ivory Coast in 1984 for the first time before winning back-to-back in Nigeria and Mali in 2000 and 2002.
Even though this is only the first game of the competition, the significance of the outcome cannot be emphasized since, should Senegal perform as expected and win the group, it may be the match that decides who will finish in the top two slots. But Guinea is undoubtedly a team to watch in this championship, and when they defeated Nigeria in their only warm-up game last week, they caused quite a stir in the run-up.
Team News
Due to ankle surgery last month, Cameroon will be without the services of important attacking midfield player Bryan Mbeumo of Brentford, who was ruled out of this tournament. The Indomitable Lions are also concerned about their goalkeeping situation because Andre Onana, who has been granted permission to play for Manchester United against Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, will be in the Ivory Coast less than twenty-four hours before kickoff. When Vincent Aboubakar hurt himself during the weekend while exercising, it might be a major setback for Rigobert Song’s preparation for this match. Rumor has it that the captain of the national team might have to pull out of the tournament.
About the fitness of their famous striker Serhou Guirassy, who was forced to leave the game against Nigeria last week due to a blow to his thigh, Guinea has a serious issue. Guirassy has been playing for his team Stuttgart in excellent form this year. In just 14 Bundesliga games, he has already scored 17 goals.
Cameroon 1-1 Guinea
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