ACTUALITE |
09.09.2009
Gabon; A Tricky Opponent
Fred VUBEM
Despite the defeat in Libreville, the Panthers remain a dangerous team.
The Indomitable Lions may have accomplished the extraordinary feat of beating Gabon 2-0 in their own backyard but the battle is far from over as the Panthers remain a formidable side capable of equally surprising the Lions in Mfandena. As Samuel Eto’o himself admitted it in an interview yesterday, the Gabonese team is not easy to manipulate. The proof being that they were able to create several goal scoring opportunities that scared Cameroonians.
After the Indomitable Lions dominated play in the opening minutes of the encounter in Libreville, the panthers took the upper hand and dominated the rest of the first half and came close to scoring twice had it not been for the vigilance of goalkeeper Kameni Carlos.
The man to watch remains the team captain Daniel Cousin, who was able to outsmart the Cameroonian defence twice before being outsmarted in turn in duels with Kameni. It goes without saying that Cameroon won the match thanks partially to the goal keeping talents of Kameni as the Gabonese rendered the right flank of the Indomitable Lions ineffective.
More so, Gabon would not want to let go after coming so close to their maiden participation in a final round of a World Cup tournament.
Besides, recent history has proofed that the home advantage doesn’t count much again and the national team has had more difficulty playing at home than out of the country due to the attitude of Cameroonian fans of switching to cheer the opponent when they play well and jeer the lions when in difficulty.
Gabon still conserves the leadership position in the group with six points despite the defeat against Cameroon and still stands the greatest chance of making it to South Africa 2010. in the group. Gabon therefore remains a tricky and dangerous opponent that Cameroon has to face with caution and determination. As the Gabonese coach said, “we have only lost a match and not the competition” depicting that Gabon has not yet given up ups of qualifying for the 2010 world Cup.
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Hits: 1 | Source:cameroon-tribune.cm | |
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