After coming into their own in the knockouts, Senegal are tipped to win their first ever Africa Cup of Nations on Sunday, as they take on Egypt, starring Liverpool’s Mo Salah, the greatest African player of the contemporary game.

It will be a clash of two Liverpool titans as Senegal’s talisman Sadio Mané takes on Egypt’s talisman Salah. Senegal are hungry to fulfil their longstanding promise and finally win the Africa Cup of Nations – while Salah is hungry to take a trophy with his national team after Premier League and Champions League triumphs with his club.

It is easy to see why the Teranga Lions went into the tournament as favourites. Mané provides lacerating pace, dazzling creativity and clinical finishing skills. They have arguably the best shot-stopper playing today in the shape of Chelsea goalkeeper Édouard Mendy. Napoli’s rock-solid defensive linchpin Kalidou Koulibaly and PSG box-to-box midfielder Idrissa Gueye – Senegal’s two world-class stars – have the field between the goalposts and upfront covered.

An Africa Cup of Nations victory for Senegal has seemed like a matter of time, ever since they enraptured football fans the world over in the 2002 World Cup, humiliating champions France – the magnificent Bleus of Thierry Henry and Patrick Vieira – with a stunning victory.

The air of inevitability faded at this year’s tournament as Senegal won their group stage in desultory fashion. Their opening match was a drab affair against minnows Zimbabwe, which saw them prevail thanks to a penalty of doubtful merit in the seventh minute of extra time. Perhaps the low point was a flaccid 0-0 draw against Malawi, where the likes of Mané played like much less talented players, fluffing passes and moving sluggishly.

But rather like the victorious Bleus in the 2018 World Cup, Senegal burst into life in the knockouts. The Teranga Lions started to roar with a decisive quarterfinal victory, slaying the tournament’s giant-killers Equatorial Guinea. 

They stepped up a gear in the semifinals against a tenacious, well-disciplined Burkina Faso. The floodgates opened some 20 minutes into the second half. Abdou Diallo scored from close range after Koulibaly reached a corner with an amazing bicycle-kick pass. Six minutes later a majestic Mané run handed a goal to Bamba Dieng.

Burkina Faso rattled Senegal when Blati Touré knocked a cross into the back of the net. But they showed the pertinacity that makes champions, soon reimposing themselves when Mané surged to meet a penetrating pass, went one-on-one with the keeper and coolly lobbed it into the back of the net.

This sparkling form will make the Teranga Lions tough opponents for the Pharaohs. But Egypt, too, have shown the resoluteness required of champions – albeit in more prosaic form. They have prevailed in three consecutive matches that went into extra time, first defeating the formidable Ivory Coast team that had just humiliated title-holders Algeria.

Egypt were the underdogs in the semifinals against hosts Cameroon, whom many tipped to win the competition amid the rampant goalscoring form of strikers Vincent Aboubakar and Karl Toko-Ekambi. But they fought back after Cameroon dominated the first half – forcing the game into extra time and then penalties. Egypt were cool, calm and collected at the spot kick, and so was Gabaski between the goalposts. They kept their nerve when Cameroon faltered to send the hosts packing.

While their victory over Cameroon exemplified Egypt’s cool determination, the Pharaohs’ victory over Morocco exhibited another prime reason why they could take the trophy: Mo Salah. Despite the presence of some highly competent players – the likes of striker David Trezeguet and right-back Omar Kamal – Egypt frankly lack the star talent Senegal have scattered around their lineup. But so far they have more than made up for it with Salah’s presence.

In the Morocco match everything rested on Salah. First he bashed in a ruthlessly opportunistic goal from close range as the ball bounced towards the six-yard line. Then the Liverpool icon created the winner with a glittering dash down the right – the stuff of defenders’ nightmares – to tee up Trezeguet for an easy finish.

For his part, Salah is determined to go back to his club with an Africa Cup of Nations winners’ medal. Ahead of the tournament he told journalists: “I can assure you that it is the trophy that I want to win most. I work to win it and that is the story with all the Egyptian players present here.”

But Salah will have to battle it out with his Liverpool strike partner Mané. As their club manager Jurgen Klopp pointed out in a press conference: “Now it’s obviously not so easy because one will definitely be really happy after and the other one much less so, but both have a good chance to achieve something really big.”

Culled from France 24

Cameroon Football Federation president Samuel Eto’o has been accused of sending a “very bad message” with his “war” comments ahead of the AFCON semi-final with Egypt.

Host nation Cameroon will face off with Egypt on Thursday night and the victor will set up a final with Senegal, who booked their spot thanks to a Sadio Mane-inspired 3-1 victory over Burkina Faso.

Mane’s Liverpool teammate Mohamed Salah has also been in fine form and chipped in with a goal and an assist as Egypt overcame Morocco in extra time in the quarter-finals.

Cameroon, meanwhile, made light work of Gambia to reach the semi-finals with a 2-0 victory last Saturday.

After the match, Eto’o delivered a speech to the dressing room in which he could be heard comparing the last-four clash with Egypt to “war”.

The footage was shared on the Facebook page of the Cameroon Football Federation, of which Eto’o was elected president last December.

The former Barcelona, Inter Milan and Chelsea striker won two AFCON titles during his glittering career and many view him as the continent’s greatest ever player.

But Egypt boss Carlos Queiroz is less than impressed by his attempts to fire-up the Cameroon players with what he views as insensitive and inappropriate language.

“It’s a very unfortunate comment, a very bad approach, a very bad message to the people of Cameroon,” Queiroz said, per BBC Sport.

“To make this declaration of war before one game [shows he] didn’t learn anything when he was in professional football.

“Football is not about war. Football is about celebration, it’s about joy, it’s about happiness.”

The tournament is being played against a tragic backdrop after eight people were killed and dozens injured during a stampede ahead of Cameroon’s encounter with Comoros in late January.

The semi-final versus Egypt is the first match to take place at Olembe Stadium since the distressing event unfolded outside the 60,000-seater ground.

“He forgot that people died at the stadium [a few] days ago,” Queiroz said as he continued his response to Eto’o, before urging the Confederation of African Football to show him a “red card”.

“To the war that was proposed by Mr Eto’o – we are going to answer with the best football, the best attitude, the best quality because this what the people expect from us,” Queiroz added.

“This is what the world wants – the Africa Cup of Nations to create honour, dignity – it cannot be a war – give me a break.”

Source: The Mirror

The Africa Cup of Nations final is scheduled to take place at the Olembe Stadium in Yaounde.

This comes as the Confederation of African Football confirmed on Sunday that, in light of assurances received by local authorities following a hearing into the causes of last Monday’s crush, there will be no venue change for Cameroon’s semi-final against Egypt nor the tournament final on January 6.

CAF’s announcement means that the second semi-final scheduled for February 3 will be at the ground along with the February 6 final.

A statement from the CAF reads, “Having noted the recommendations and undertakings from the government in regard to additional security provisions…the CAF Organising Committee unanimously agreed to lift the suspension imposed on the Olembe Stadium.

“The Local Organising Committee and the government of Cameroon having significantly increased security and resources at the Olembe Stadium, (CAF) are confident that the safety and security of spectators and visitors will be assured.”

Eight people were reported to have been killed and dozens hurt in a crush outside the stadium hosting an Africa Cup of Nations match in Cameroon.

A video footage showed football fans struggling to get access to the Paul Biya stadium in a neighbourhood of the capital Yaounde.

Another report said a number of children had lost consciousness.

The stadium has a capacity of 60,000 but because of COVID-19 restrictions, it was not meant to be about 80 per cent filled.

Match officials were quoted as saying that some 50,000 people were trying to attend.

Source: Reuters

Tickets for the 2022 Africa Cup of Nations in Cameroon officially went on sale on Tuesday amid French government diabolic harsh ploy to sabotage the Africa Cup of Nations with lame and ridiculous claim that a new ‘Covid variant’ IHU has been detected in Cameroon.

Cameroon’s Minister of Sports and Physical Education Narcisse Mouelle Kombi, who is also president of the competition’s organizing committee, said tickets will be sold online and in established kiosks across the country.

“We have taken adequate measures to avoid trafficking. We understand that our stadiums have limited capacity. All we can do is to assure Cameroonians that tickets will be on the basis of first come, first served,” Eric Binfon told reporters.

Tickets will be priced between 3,000 XAF and 20,000 XAF (5 USD to 35 USD) depending on the category and stage of the competition, Binfon said.

The tournament, which features 24 teams, begins on Sunday with hosts Cameroon taking on Burkina Faso at the 60,000-seat Olembe stadium in the capital Yaounde.

The biennial competition will end on February 6.

By Xinhuanet and Cameroon Concord News

Africa’s most prominent soccer championship, the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), has twice been pushed forward.

The first postponement was because Cameroon was deemed unprepared to host the games, and the second was because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) — Africa’s soccer governing body — is now being asked if the escalating violence in the country’s Anglophone regions poses too great a threat to spectators and team safety.

A vicious civil war has been raging in Cameroon’s English-speaking areas, whose people make up 20% of the Central African country, since September 2017.

The clashes are between Cameroonian government forces and armed separatist groups.

Parties on both sides of the conflict committed widespread human rights violations in 2020, including extrajudicial or summary executions and mass murders in Cameroon’s Anglophone regions, a report by Human Rights Watch found.

There are now mounting calls to delay the AFCON competition until the warring parties call for a ceasefire and enter peace negotiations.

Can matches be played in Anglophone regions?

According to the AFCON fixture, 24 qualifying teams are scheduled to play matches in six venues across Cameroon.

Limbe stadium is in the Anglophone zone, Bafoussam stadium is near its border, and the others, located in majority-French-speaking regions (Yaounde, Douala, and Garoua) may also be vulnerable to attacks.

In 2021, the Anglophone conflict witnessed an escalation in improvised explosive devices (IED).

There have also been several explosions outside the Anglophone regions, with officials holding separatist groups responsible for the blasts.

In particular, Yaounde saw IED explosions which injured civilians in June, July, August, and November 2020.

There is a real risk of such attacks in all AFCON venues, especially in Limbe.

Although Limbe is one of the few relatively quiet towns in the Anglophone regions, two bomb attacks during the African Championship of Nations football tournament in January 2020, one of which injured police officers, highlights the city’s vulnerability.

An armed separatist group called the Fako Action Forces (FAF) claimed responsibility for at least one of those IEDs. Moreover, the same group has recently been active in Buea, the capital of the Southwest Region and close to Limbe.

Last month, FAF claimed an IED attack on the University of Buea which injured 11 students. They also killed a driver for defying the separatists’ Monday stay-at-home- “ghost town” orders, which have been in place for five years.

CAF under pressure

Given the increasing attacks on civilians, the Confederation of African Football may come under pressure to postpone the tournament until President Paul Biya’s regime attends peace talks.

Moreover, during AFCON, the deteriorating security situation would pose risks to players on and off the pitch.

The Cameroon authorities allegedly wish to host AFCON because of its status this will confer on them, on the continent and beyond.

Many believe that President Biya hopes to win the favor of young Cameroonians by staging the matches. Yet, the games may also offer an opportunity for young Cameroonians to express their frustration with the country’s human-rights abuses.

The Cameroonian government has consistently responded to peaceful protests with violence and military action, losing support and driving more youth to take up arms.

Biya, 88, has been in power since 1982.

International election observers routinely condemn Cameroon’s elections for lacking legitimacy.

Human rights watchdogs accuse his forces of behaving with impunity, targeting unarmed civilians in the Anglophone regions, burning villages, and causing over 700,000 people (out of 6 million people living there) to flee into the bush or elsewhere in the country. Tens of thousands more are in exile in neighboring Nigeria and beyond.

When sports mix with politics

This controversial AFCON is not the first time sporting events have become sensitive politically.

In the 1970s, protests greeted the cricket team of repressive apartheid South Africa when it went on tour.

The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan led the USA and other countries to pull their athletes from participation in the 1980 Moscow Olympics.

Politics overshadowed the 2008 Beijing Olympics due to China’s human-rights violations, brutal crackdown on Tibet, and initial refusal to support sending peacekeepers to stop a genocide in Darfur.

The upcoming 2022 Beijing Olympics is under scrutiny due to China’s mistreatment of its Uyghur minority.

Cameroon security services recently conducted anti-terrorism simulation exercises, including a mock attack on a stadium, but the shadow of the 1972 Munich Olympics, where the Palestinian group Black September murdered 11 Israeli athletes, hangs over any proposed AFCON soccer games.

The fact that the country needs to practice these simulations begs the question: Why is the Confederation of African Football allowing AFCON to take place in an insecure environment and under the authority of a government committing crimes against humanity against its citizens?

For the sake of AFCON and the sake of suffering Cameroonian citizens, the Confederation and the Cameroonian government should think carefully about the safety and morality of hosting the Africa Cup of Nations in January in Cameroon.

Source: DeutscheWelle