Cameroon see off spirited Comoros to reach last eight

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Cameroon 2-1 Comoros

Cameroon progressed to the quarter-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations with a 2-1 win against 10-man Comoros, despite a courageous performance from their depleted opponents.

The big news before the game was that Comoros would have to start an outfield player in goal, with first-choice goalkeeper Salim Ben Boina injured in their shock win against Ghana and back-ups Moyadh Ousseini and Ali Ahamada subsequently testing positive for Covid. Chaker Alhadhur was given the nod, with the Ajaccio left-back looking understandably nervous in his bright blue goalkeeping kit as the anthems rang round the Olembe Stadium.

The odds were further stacked against the underdogs when, seven minutes in, Jimmy Abdou was sent off after catching Moumi Ngamaleu on the back of the ankle. While it looked innocuous in real time and was missed by referee Bamlak Tessema Weyesa, he was called to the monitor by VAR and, on reviewing the incident, decided to show Abdou a straight red.

Amazingly,Comoros held out for almost half an hour without conceding. The Indomitable Lions finally opened the scoring when Karl Toko Ekambi lashed into the far corner, leaving Alhadhur stranded, but almost ceded the lead minutes later when Andre Onana was forced to make a fantastic double save to keep out Ahmed Mogni and Mohamed Youssouf.

When the half-time whistle went with the score at 1-0, it felt like a huge achievement for Alhadhur and co. Where their hosts had been wasteful, Comoros had battled for every ball and worked incredibly hard to stay in the game.

The second half began with a fantastic save from Alhadhur, who denied Vincent Aboubakar a headed goal with his legs. He followed up with an incredible double stop of his own, getting down low to frustrate Aboubakar again before keeping out Ngamaleu on the follow-up.

Cameroon thought they had finally broken their opponents’ resistance when, with 70 minutes on the clock, Aboubakar sprinted in behind, waltzed around Alhadhur and lashed into the net from close range. They were not accounting for Youssouf M’Changama, however, who gave Comoros hope against all odds with a beautiful free kick from 30 yards.

Comoros continued to give as good as they got right up until the final whistle, but Cameroon held on for the win. They will now face Gambia in the quarter-finals, though their opponents deserve to return home as national heroes.

The result has been overshadowed by reports six people have been killed and dozens hurt in a crush outside the stadium.

The stadium has a capacity of 60,000 but because of Covid restrictions it was not meant to be more than 80% full.

Naseri Paul Biya, governor of Cameroon’s central region, said there may be more casualties.