Five-time champions Cameroon will open their campaign at the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament on Monday when they lock horns with Guinea at Yamoussoukro’s Charles Konan Banny Stadium.
The Cameroon’s Indomitable Lions are coming into the game with selection headaches following injury to Bryan Mbuemo and Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting dropped out of the squad for missing recent friendlies.
Goalkeeper André Onana has missed the entire preparation for the tournament as well and he is unavailable for Monday’s game after Cameroon agreed to let him stay with Manchester United to play against Tottenham in the Premier League on Sunday. Fabrice Ondoa has deputised between the sticks and will probably do so against Guinea.
While Cameroon’s historical achievements in the tournament may make them slight favourites for this match, Guinea shouldn’t be underestimated given their strong recent form.
Despite maintaining an unbeaten record, Cameroon’s performances in their last three matches have been less than convincing. After securing a comfortable 3-0 victory against Mauritius, they faced a tougher challenge in their second game, resulting in a 1-1 draw against Libya, while their latest outing also ended in a 1-1 tie against Zambia.
Meanwhile, Guinea impressed by securing a draw against Senegal and progressing to the knockout stages of the last AFCON competition. Notably, since 1998, they have only encountered one instance of failing to advance beyond the group stage when qualifying for the tournament. Guinea will enter the match with huge confidence and appear well-equipped to present a challenge to Cameroon in what is anticipated to be a closely contested encounter.
Head-to-head:
Monday’s game will be the 20th meeting between the two teams. Cameroon has secured victory in seven of their previous matchups, while Guinea has won two fewer. Additionally, there have been seven draws in the encounters between the two teams. In their most recent clash during the third-place match of the 2020 African Nations Championship, Guinea emerged victorious with a 2-0 win. The National Elephants maintain an undefeated streak in their last three games against Cameroon.
Cameroon, on the other hand, has been without a clean sheet in their last seven games against Guinea, with this run dating back to 1998.
Cameroon are not fancied by many to go all the way and win the tournament, despite only Egypt having won it more often than the Indomitable Lions (five), but the same was true before the 2017 AFCON, which they did win.