Football development was at the heart of the discussions when Cameroonian Football Federation (FECAFOOT) President and Indomitable Lions legend Samuel Eto’o visited FIFA President Gianni Infantino at FIFA’s Paris hub on Thursday.

“I was pleased to meet FECAFOOT President Samuel Eto’o in Paris,” Mr Infantino said. “We discussed football, including the positive impact of the various FIFA Forward initiatives implemented in his football-loving country and how FIFA can continue to collaborate to help in the development of the sport in the country.

“I am grateful to all involved with football in Cameroon for the work in reaching and touching more lives positively through our beautiful game and want to encourage them to keep up the good work.”

Four FIFA Forward projects aimed at developing football in Cameroon have been conducted since 2016 for a total funding of nearly USD 10 million.

The renovation of the Odza Technical Centre, the FCF’s headquarters, was a particularly significant initiative. It has traditionally served as the national teams’ training base and is the focal point of Cameroonian football. Eto’o, who became FCF President in December 2021, described it as a “massive asset that’ll enable Cameroonian football to develop far more quickly”.

The meeting also featured discussions about infrastructure development, improvements in both the local league and players’ conditions, and brand new development projects under the FIFA Forward 3.0 initiative, which is in line with the contract of agreed objectives between FIFA and FECAFOOT.

Source: FIFA

A nervy Cameroon scored twice in the second half to beat Burundi 3-0 in Garoua on Tuesday and qualify for January’s Africa Cup of Nations finals, overcoming their plucky opponents as Andre Onana marked his return to the team with a series of key saves.

Cameroon had needed to win the game to ensure a place in the finals. Victory saw them finish top of three-team Group C and also ensured that Namibia would qualify with them while Burundi missed out.

Bryan Mbeumo took advantage of a defensive slip to score one minute into the second half before defender Christopher Wooh swept home the ball from close range for the second goal in the 59th minute.

Wooh had missed the header from a corner by Karl Toko Ekambi but it fell loose and he was quick to sweep it home.

A clearance that came off the back of a defender allowed captain Vincent Aboubakar to score the third goal deep in stoppage time.

Burundi had needed only a draw and, despite their lowly ranking 98 places below the 42nd-ranked Indomitable Lions, came out the more positive team and Onana had to make several key stops to deny both Bonfils-Caleb Bimenyimana and Saidi Ntibazonzika.

Onana was making his return to the side after a fallout with coach Rigobert Song during the World Cup in Qatar last year which resulted in him being kicked out of their camp.

The new Manchester United goalkeeper showed his worth as Cameroon won for the first time since their 1-0 victory over Brazil in Qatar in their last group game in December.

With Group C settled, the field for the 24-team Cup of Nations finals in the Ivory Coast from Jan. 13-Feb. 11 next year is complete.

Source: Reuters

Head coach, Rigobert Song Bahanag on Tuesday, August 29, 2023, made public a list of 24 players ahead of their last AFCON qualifiers game against Burundi scheduled for September 12, 2023, at the Rhumde Adja Stadium in Garoua, Cameroon.

The list is made up of 3 goalkeepers, 8 defenders, 7 midfielders, and 6 attackers. There is the conspicuous comeback of Clinton Njie, André Onana, and Harold Moukoudi. One of the major absences is that of Fai Collins.

Clinton Njie’s recent brilliant performances with the Turkish club, Sivaspor is the main reason for his coming back to the national team since the 2021 AFCON in Cameroon.

The 30-year-old has already netted 1 goal and provided an assist in 3 league games and has scored 4 goals and provided an assist in his last 6 club games. The player is rated 7/10 by Sofascore.

On his official Instagram account, Njie wrote that “hard work and patience” have brought him this far.

If things are smiling for Clinton Njie, the contrary should be said for Fai Collins who does not feature in Song’s list.

The defender’s last appearance with the Indomitable Lions was on June 11, 2023, when the team played a 2-2 draw with Mexico in a friendly

The 31-year-old’s last game at the club level with Saudi Arabian side AL Tai was on May 31, 2023. He is currently a free agent.

Other major absences are Nicolas Nkoulou, Jean Charles Castelleto, Kunde Malong, and Jean Pierre Nsame.

The Lions are currently ranked second in group C with 4 points, the same number of points with Burundi in third place. The group is currently headed by Namibia with 5 points who will be on standby.

Cameroon needs a win to finish as group leaders and qualify for the group stage of the Africa Cup of Nations in Côte d’Ivoire.

Source: Cameroon News Agency

Manchester United’s new goalkeeper Andre Onana has been recalled to Cameroon’s squad some nine months after he walked out on the team during the World Cup in Qatar.

Onana was named on Tuesday by coach Rigobert Song in the squad for the Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Burundi in Garoua on Sept. 12, where the Indomitable Lions need only a draw to guarantee a place at January’s finals in the Ivory Coast.

Onana, 27, left the Cameroon squad in Qatar last November after their opening group game against Switzerland following a dispute with Song over tactics and training.

The Cameroon Football Federation said he was suspended and had been sent home and he has not played for the country since, having announced his retirement from international football.

But on Tuesday at a press conference in Yaounde, Song denied there had been a problem with Onana and said it was natural that as the best available goalkeeper he was in the squad.

“There was never a problem with Andre, the door has always been open to him and we are happy he is coming back to join the group,” said Song.

Source: Reuters

Cameroon Football Federation (FECAFOOT) president Samuel Eto’o on Thursday urged his supporters not to give up following widespread criticisms of how he has been managing the football governing body.

“Peace and serenity to those who support me in my project to restore all the greatness to Cameroonian football. We endure the violence of adversity, but let’s not give in to it,” Eto’o said in a statement published on his Facebook page.

“Our intentions are noble, our strength is our faith in a better future for our young footballers. We will achieve this with the help of Cameroonians. Strength and courage to you, my friends,” the former Barcelona striker added.

The statement came barely two weeks after the Confederation of African Football announced that it had opened an investigation into “allegations of inappropriate conduct” by Eto’o following complaints from “several Cameroonian football stakeholders”.

Eto’o was elected the FECAFOOT president in 2021.

Source: Xinhuanet

Andre Onana is set to return to his national team side after solving a dispute with Cameroon manager Rigobert Song, according to reports.

Manchester United summer signing quit international football during the 2022 World Cup in Qatar after a disagreement with the head coach.

The blame for the fallout with Onana has gone to Samuel Eto’o, the president of the Cameroon football federation. It is believed he wanted to get rid of the keeper at all costs.

But, much to our disappointment, it looks like Onana has solved his differences with Song. That means we’ll likely be without Onana throughout the African Cup of Nations.

According to Actu Foot Afrique, Onana will return to the Cameroon squad in September for the next international break.

This comes as a boost for Cameroon ahead of the AFCON, which is due to take place between 13 January and 11 February 2024.

Whereas for United, this has thrown a big spanner in the works, and now football director John Murtough is in a race against time to sign a new keeper before the transfer deadline.

United have been linked to Fenerbahce goalkeeper Altay Bayindir to come in as a new back-up option. That could be our fall back option during the AFCON.

Tom Heaton will third-choice keeper at the club but he’s currently out with an injury.

Source: Manchester United news

More and more young Cameroonian players are leaving the country at an early age to join European clubs. Most often for a derisory sum. Journalist Alain Denis Ikoul takes issue with this state of affairs and calls for change.

François-Régis Mughe, a talent who left Cameroon too early?

Carlos Baleba, Regis Mughe, Mimb Baheng, Aboubakar Naguida… All these players have two things in common: they are Cameroonian and left their homeland at the age of 18. And they’re not the only ones to have left so early in recent years. It’s a situation that raises eyebrows in Samuel Eto’o’s homeland. These youngsters leave Cameroon for modest sums, only to be sold on by their European clubs for millions of euros. Carlos Baléba, for example, was bought by Lille for 650,000 euros in January 2022. Today, he’s on his way to Brighton for almost 30 million euros, more than 40 times what he was worth when he left Cameroon. This is a “catastrophe for Cameroonian soccer”, according to Alain Denis Ikoul, a Cameroonian journalist for Actu Cameroun. He continues. “This poses a problem for the development of Cameroonian talent.

“For the same talent and age as these young Cameroonians, a young Brazilian, Argentinean or Uruguayan will first play his professional league in his own country for at least 2 years, then become a small national star in his country between 18 and 20, before being transferred to Europe, generally for huge sums of money”, adds Ikoul, who is worried about the future of soccer in Cameroon.

Is sporting nationality a problem?

The journalist also points to another major problem. According to him, sporting nationality plays a major role in the valuation of players. A footballer in Cameroon doesn’t fetch the same price on the market as one in Brazil. Even if both are equal in terms of intrinsic talent. “For example, Brazilian-trained Neymar first played in the Brazilian league with Santos until he was 21, before being transferred to Barça for 88 million euros. His Brazilian-trained compatriot Vinícius will first play 69 Pro games in Brazil before joining Real Madrid for 45 million euros. Argentinian Julián Álvarez, trained at River Plate, played in Argentina for 3 years before signing for Manchester City for 21 million euros (…). What about the youngsters who played Elite One in Cameroon before going out?

He continues: “The best player in the best championship in the history of Cameroonian soccer (2021-2022), Souaibou Marou, who plays for the best Cameroonian club of the 21st century, signed in South Africa for less than 200,000 euros at the age of 22. The same year, Cameroon’s two top scorers Bertrand Mani and Enow Kembe signed for less than 100,000 euros in complicated destinations. The year before, Lambert Ngueme Ariana had signed in North Africa at the age of 21 for an equally derisory sum, but he’s now off the footballing map. Today, no club in the world is prepared to spend 200,000 euros on a talent like Patient Wassou”. According to Ikoul, these are just some of the problems plaguing the Cameroonian league

Source: Sports News Africa