Joel Matip believes Liverpool team-mates Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane would both be worthy winners of the Confederation of African Football (CAF) Player of the Year award. The Reds duo are flying to Ghana to attend Thursday night’s ceremony in Accra. They will return to Merseyside on Friday morning ahead of the FA Cup clash with Everton at Anfield.

Salah and Mane are joined on the three-man shortlist by Borussia Dortmund striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. Liverpool’s 23-goal top scorer Salah, who also fired Egypt to the World Cup in Russia, is the favourite to lift the trophy.

Former Cameroon international Matip said: “I don’t know who will win but I hope it will be Mo or Sadio.

“They both had a great year. It’s a joy to watch them playing football. Liverpool’s record signing Virgil van Dijk pictured training with Reds for the first time

“It’s a great honour for Liverpool to have two of the three players who are on the shortlist for such a big award. “That says everything about the quality they bring and what they have achieved over the past 12 months.”

Source: The Echo

Cameroon president Paul Biya has reiterated that his country will be ready to host the next African Cup of Nations (AFCON) slated for next year. Speaking in his End-of-Year address to the nation, Biya said he had personally made a commitment to that effect as that Cameroon will put its best foot forward come 2017.

“As you are aware, in 2019, our country will host the large continental football family on the occasion of the Africa Cup of Nations. Beyond the purely sporting aspect, this will avail us an opportunity to offer our guests Cameroon’s warm hospitality.

“I have no doubt that, like our athletes, our population will rise to the occasion and showcase Cameroon at its best. Our country will be ready for this grand celebration of friendship. I have made a commitment to that end,” he stressed.

The Indomitable Lions of Cameroon – the national team – are the reigning AFCON champions having won their fifth trophy in February 2017 in Gabon.

The Confederation of African Football in December 2017 expressed misgivings about Cameroon’s preparedness to host the AFCON. CAF president Ahmad Ahmad said they will not hesitate to strip Cameroon of the rights if they fail to meet important deadlines.

“We leave the country to work with a private firm independent without influence or that whatsoever. It is up to them to provide us with the elements that will allow us after to say that Cameroon will be ready or that Cameroon will not be ready. But nothing will be negotiated,” Ahmad Ahmad said during a visit to Ivory Coast.

There was talk in August last year that Cameroon was “not ready”, generating an issue and a possible relocation of the tournament. Whereas Cameroon is able to host 16 teams as was the case with Gabon in 2017. The proposed expansion to 24 teams has been okayed by CAF at a symposium held in Morocco and it is due to be started with the 2019 tournament.

Source: Africa News

The Confederation of African Football, CAF, have set aside a new date to inspect Cameroon’s state of readiness regarding the 2019 African Cup of Nations. The football governing body has appointed an inspection team that will visit Cameroon for 12 days from January 11 to 23 to assess the country’s progress as it prepares to host the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations. The delegation will inspect facilities such as stadiums and hotels in host cities towards the successful organisation of the 32nd edition of the biennial tournament scheduled for June and July 2019.

According to FECAFOOT’s Dieudenno Happi, he said the country is on the right track and will be ready to host the tournament. “The CAF has informed us that the inspection visit should take place on January 11-23,” he said in an interview with Actu Cameroun. “Based on the current level of progress, what we understand is that even if this visit was taking place this week, I think Cameroon would be ready. “Besides, it’s not a secret, I can deliver it to you too, I told Ahmad Ahmad at the CAN organizing meeting in Cairo. “I told him that Cameroon would be ready to receive the visit of this mission of the CAF in November 2017. “It’s good because I knew that the work was progressing normally, that logically, there should be no problem. And the decision to come rather in the first quarter of 2018 is a decision of the CAF and is welcome.“

Source: Leadership.Ng

The Southern Cameroons Defense Force has said that it will stage attacks during the African Cup of Nations in 2019. Tens of thousands of football fans are expected to attend the AFCON 2019 in Cameroon over the month-long games.

Cameroon government troops will tighten security in the wake of the warning of terror threats. Southern Cameroons largest constituency, the Manyu has been subjected to deadly military operations by the Francophone dominated army.

The Southern Cameroons militants have reportedly killed more than a hundred Cameroon government forces in retaliation for Biya regime’s helicopter strikes in what is now known as the Federal Republic of Ambazonia.

Last week the Southern Cameroons militants released a statement saying the security of the 84 year old Cameroonian dictator cannot be guaranteed “if he visits the Bamenda State in Southern Cameroons.” We understand the visit was cancelled. The Southern Cameroons Defense Force has called on its loyalists to attack every French Cameroun government security apparatus in the country.

Mean while, the African Football Confederation, CAF has announced its first inspection mission of Cameroon’s infrastructures for the 2019 AFCON from the 11^th to 23^rd of January 2018. Cameroon Intelligence Report has been reliably informed that the inspection will now be conducted by a German firm Roland Berger. Roland Berger was assigned the task in November 2017, by the CAF after a call for tenders. The competition will be held from June 7th to July 7th.

5 cities have been designated to host the competition. Group A & C, Yaoundé (Center region), Group B Douala (Littoral), Group D in Bafoussam (West region), Group E Limbé (South West) and Group F Garoua (North).

Six stadiums will accommodate the games which for the first time will bring together 24 African National teams namely Limbé stadium (20,000 capacity), completed in 2014, Bafoussam 20,000 delivered in 2016, the Yaoundé Ahmadou Ahidjo 40 000 seats) renovated, Roumdé Adjia Garoua (25 000 seats) still under renovation, Olembé sports complex – or so-called Paul Biya Stadium – in Yaoundé (60 000) is also still under construction just like that of Japoma in Douala, with seating capacity of 50 000. The Francophone dominated Cameroon government says both stadiums will be delivered by the end of 2018.

In a related development, the Interim Government of the Federal Republic of Ambazonia has also warned the African football governing body not to stage the tournament in Cameroon particularly in Southern Cameroons territory. In a document addressed to CAF and FIFA, the Ambazonian leader, Sisiku Ayuk Tabe noted that the Interim Government cannot guarantee the security of the players and various delegations.

Culled from Cameroon Intelligence Report

Confederation of African Football (CAF) president, Ahmad, has reiterated his warning to Cameroon about their hosting of the Africa Cup of Nations. Ahmad Ahmad In response to a question about Cameroon holding on to the hosting of the tournament in its new expanded 24-team format in 2019 Ahmad wasted few words.

“If the host country is unable to organise it, we will find a country that will organise it,” he said. “The authorities in the country, up to the head of state, have always confirmed to us that they will be ready.” Before CAF approved changes to the format and timing of the Nations Cup, Cameroon’s sports minister Ismael Bidoung had been forced to deny preparations were behind schedule.

Cameroon once again insisted it would be ready to host the tournament soon after Caf moved it to June/July and increased it from 16 to 24 teams. In August Ahmad said: “Cameroon will have to work to convince Caf on its ability to host the event.” He again clarified that it will be down to an independent company conducting inspections to let Caf know if Cameroon are fit to host the event. “We will leave it to the host country to work with an independent private firm without any influence from us whatsoever,” “It is up to them to provide us with the information that will enable us to say that Cameroon will be ready or Cameroon will not be ready. But we won’t negotiate anything.”

Audit firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers was due to conduct an inspection in August but they withdrew at short notice without giving reasons. An inspection is now due to happen early in 2018.

Source: Vanguard

People on social media are sharing photos appearing to show migrants returning home from Libya after being released from slavery. However, the top image dates back at least a year and shows migrants leaving Libya for Burkina Faso:

Football star Samuel Eto’o has denied claims that he personally donated money or purchased plane tickets for Cameroonian migrants so they could return home.

In a post on his Facebook page, he said “this rumour is completely baseless”. He urged his followers to act to prevent the terrible plight of migrants rather than react to it, adding that “among the victims will be people who we’ve lived alongside at some point”.

Source: BBC

The Zambia National Football team has regrouped in Ndola ahead of the 2018 RUSSIA world cup qualifier against Cameroon.

Football Association of Zambia- FAZ communications manager Desmond Katongo has confirmed the development to ZNBC news.

Katongo says Justine Shonga, Kennedy Mweene, Lewis Macha and Brian Mwila have already joined camp.

He also confirmed that Fashion Sakala, Enock Mwepu, Patson Daka and Stopila Sunzu are expected to join camp on Tuesday. The game will be played at Levy Mwanawasa stadium in Ndola.

Chiefs, who have just a single victory so far in the 2017/18 campaign, are running their eye over Julien Ebah and Christ Mbondi. Ebah, who turns 27 next week, was the top scorer in the Cameroon league in 2015 before moving from New Star to Kapaz PFK in Azerbaijan.

The 25-year-old Mbondi moved from the Bamenda Academy to FC Sion in Switzerland, but played just three first team games before going playing in Thailand, Algerian and Paraguay over the last three years. Chiefs currently already have three foreigners on their books this season – Ernest Chirambadare, Teenage Hadebe and Gustavo Paez.

Meanwhile The Premier Soccer League (PSL) has announced a new date for the first Soweto derby of the season, which will now take place on Saturday, October 21. Chiefs were originally scheduled to lock horns with arch-rivals Orlando Pirates at the FNB Stadium on October 28, but the fixture has now been brought forward by a week.

Source: Sport 24

August 18 – Cameroon will learn on September 23 whether it can go ahead and stage the first expanded African Nations Cup finals in 2019 or whether it will have to step down through lack of facilities. The Confederation of African Football (CAF) has called a meeting of its executive committee in Accra where officials will be presented with the report of next week’s inspection visit to Cameroon by a panel of independent experts.

Cameroon officials are dismayed at recent comments by CAF president Ahmad Ahmad which appeared to question the country’s ability to host a 24-team finals even before the inspection team has set foot in the country. This is perceived by some as a deliberate vendetta against Ahmad’s long-serving Cameroonian predecessor Issa Hayatou,
Under revised rules, the host nation for the Continent’s flagship event will have to provide a minimum of six stadiums: two of 15,000 seats, two of 20,000 and two of 40,000 seats for the opening and closing ceremonies. If Cameroon’s candidacy is ruled out, a new bid process would probably be launched in the autumn with Algeria, Morocco and Ivory Coast potential interested parties.

CAF has faced several precedents of host nations being switched late on. The latest example was in 2015 when Morocco pulled out because of fears over the Ebola virus – the country was banned for its stance – and was replaced by Equatorial Guinea. Two years earlier, South Africa supplanted Libya which was embroiled in civil war.

With Morocco having forged strong links with Ahmad and having hosted a number of CAF meetings and Ahmad visits, they are the strong favourites to pick up 2019 finals if (or seemingly more likely when) it is stripped from Cameroon.

Culled from Insideworldfootball

The Second Vice President of CAF, Constant Omari has met with Cameroonian football legend Samuel Eto’o to discuss CAF’s position on the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations.

The CAF boss indicated that his meeting with Samuel Eto’o was to explain the reasons behind Ahmad Ahmad’s declaration that Cameroon was not ready to host the 2019 AFCON. To him, CAF’s president was concerned about the security and safety of the African players and delegations to be sojourn in Cameroon during the football tournament.

Constant Omari added that the pronouncement was just part of CAF’s intention to hasten up preparations in the host country. The clarification from the second Vice President of CAF was appreciated by Samuel Eto’o who also moonlights as UNICEF goodwill Ambassador in Cameroon.

Source: CRTV