By Basil K. Mbuye
An invigorated Indomitable Lions squad, Sunday, November 17, humbled the Carthage Eagles of Tunisia 4-1 to book their place at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
For the 7th time, Cameroon will feature at the greatest level of world football tourney, following their emphatic win over Tunisia.
In the second play-off match for the African qualifiers for 2014 Brazil World Cup, at the Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium in Yaound?, the Indomitable Lions clipped the wings of the Carthage Eagles. In the first leg game played on October 13 in Rades, Tunisia, the Lions held the Eagles to a zero all tie.
A 4-3-3 squad strategy put in place by German head coach, Volker Finke, will pay off at the beginning of the match as Achille Kwamou Webo opened scores at the third minute of play.
Webo, much criticised for his uninspiring performances with the Lions, gave the team the booster after superb opener making up for the golden opportunity he squandered in Rades that would have given Cameroon the lead.
Regaining confidence and a huge fan support from the more than 70,000 people that answered present at the Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium, the Lions will punish the Tunisians with a second goal at the twenty-ninth minute, with Benjamin Moukandjo concretising a solo move that saw him mesmerise five defenders before shooting into the Tunisian goal post.
The stadium came alive and the players of Volker Finke already looking forward to be in Brazil come 2014.
The first segment ended with Cameroon on a two-goal lead.
The second half resumed with the Tunisians poised to come back in the game. Their offensive machinery made moves to destabilise the Cameroonian defence set up of; Aurelien Chedjou, Nicolas Koulou, Stephane Mbia and Benoit Assou Ekotto. The Carthage Eagles succeeded at the fiftieth minute when forward, Akaichi Ahmed, benefitted from a long range pass from the midfield and shot into the goal post of Cameroonian keeper, Charles Itandje, for the opener for Tunisia.
Though the Tunisians thought they could be revitalised by their goal, the Cameroonians rather grew conscious that they must go to Brazil 2014, and thus remobilised their game plan as coach Finke put in more pep by withdrawing a tired-looking Webo and introducing an inspired Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting at the attack line. The presence of Choupo-Moting was a good omen for Cameroon as he put the Tunisian defence under constant pressure, creating more scoring opportunities. Choupo-Moting?s strike presented a golden opportunity for Jean II Makoun, who had headed in the third goal, to score a brace. An entire nation will explode with joy as the gate of Brazil 2014 was now open for Cameroon.
Samuel Eto?o who played at the offensive midfield position was more of an organiser for the team, as he supplied some of the good passes for his fellow attackers to make the difference.
At the blast of the final whistle, the Lions will celebrate with their fans at the Mfandena stadium, with Eto?o leading the dancing session.
The Indomitable Lions joined Nigeria and Ivory Coast that already picked qualification tickets in the weekend for the football jamboree in Brazil next year. The Super Eagles of Nigeria had the first of five African tickets, Saturday, November 16, at the stadium in Calabar, walloping Ethiopia 2-0. The Super Eagles had crushed the Ethiopians 2 ? 1 in the first leg play-off in Addis Ababa. The Elephants of Ivory Coast pulled a one-all-tie with the Senegalese in Morocco, after they had beaten the Teranga Lions of Senegal 3 ? 1 in the first leg play-off in Abidjan on October 13.
On Tuesday, November 19, the Black Stars of Ghana will play against the Pharaohs of Egypt in an empty stadium in Cairo. The Ghanaians are in Cairo to consolidate their earlier 6 ? 1 bashing of the Egyptians. That will be a battle for the fourth ticket, while same day, Algeria will want to turn the tides against Burkina Faso. In the first leg play-off in Ouagadougou, on October 13, the Algerians lost 2-3 to the Burkinabes. The Fennecs of Algeria need a goal without conceding to qualify for Brazil 2014, while Burkina Faso must hold on to their 3-2 victory to qualify. That game promises to be explosive come Tuesday, November 19 Algiers.
Cameroon will be featuring at the World Cup for the 7th time after their first experience in 1982 in Spain, 1990 in Italy, 1994 in the USA, 1998 in France, 2002 in Korea-Japan co-host and 2010 in South Africa.
