Izuchukwu Okosi
Hosts Cameroon on Monday night qualified for the quarter finals of the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations 2021 following an eventful 2-1 victory over Comoros.
Villarreal striker Karl Toko Ekambi gave the Indomitable Lions lead just before the half hour mark with a neat finish inside the area.
Captain Vincent Aboubakar doubled their advantage 20 minutes from time before Comoros captain Youssouf M’Changama pulled a goal back from free kick.
Defender Chaker Alhadhur started in goal for Comoros who were without their recognised goalkeepers for the last 16 match at the Stade Olembe in Yaoundé. He had a decent game despite not being a keeper by training.
The debutants had a difficult start against Cameroon when captain Nadjim Abdou was sent off after 7 minutes for a foul on Moumi Ngamaleu.
With a man down Comoros put up brave performance against the Indomitable Lions. Andre Onana had to be at his best to keep Cameroon in the match.
Earlier on Monday, Musa Barrow’s strike in the second half gave Gambia a historic 1-0 win over Guinea to qualify for the quarterfinals of the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations at the Stade Omnisports de Bafoussam.
The Scorpions continue to send shockwaves in their debut appearance at the Africa Cup of Nations and are without a loss in the competition so far.
The Syli Nationale were without influential skipper Naby Keita who is serving a suspension while Gambia made some last minute changes to their original starting line up after three players Ibou Touray together with Noah Sonko and Saidy Janko, pulled out of the match due to illness.
Izuchukwu Okosi is a Nigerian sports and entertainment journalist with two decades of experience in the media industry having begun his media journey in 2002 as an intern at Mundial Sports International (MSI) and Africa Independent Television (AIT), owners of Daar Communications Plc.
