Cameroon cruises into AFCON quarter final to tackle Gambia
By AFP
Hosts Cameroon has set up an Africa Cup of Nations quarter-final against Gambia after winning 2-1 over a Comoros side that were forced to start an outfield player in goal and played the game with 10 men.
Comoros suffered a setback after the left-back Chaker Alhadhur started between the posts for Comoros in Yaounde due to the fact that two of their three goalkeepers were ruled out as a result of Covid-19 while the other was missing due to injury.
Chaker Alhadhur had to use tape to mark out his number three on the back of his goalkeeper’s jersey.
The Comoros captain Nadjim Abdou sent off after just seven minutes, while Karl Toko-Ekambi put Cameroon in front before skipper Vincent Aboubakar scored his sixth goal of the tournament.
Comoros, a tiny Indian Ocean island nation qualified for the last 16 in their first-ever appearance at the Cup of Nations after finishing as one of the best third-placed teams in the group stage.
A total of 12 players and staff tested positive for Covid-19 two days before the tie, including goalkeepers Ali Ahamada and Moyadh Ousseini.
Their other goalkeeper, Salim Ben Boina, was injured but they had hoped Ahamada would be able to start after he tested negative on the day of the game.
The 30-year-old Ahamada flew from Garoua, where he had been isolated, to Yaounde on Monday afternoon in the hope of being able to play, only for the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to decide otherwise as his positive result had come just two days earlier.
The islanders, whose coach Amir Abdou was among those missing after testing positive, had their skipper harshly sent off following a VAR review for a foul on Moumi Ngamaleu but they never gave up.
The Indomitable Lions kept their dream of winning the Cup of Nations on home soil alive as they advanced to a last-eight tie in Douala against Gambia on Saturday.
Like Comoros, a Gambia side ranked 150th in the world are appearing at their first-ever AFCON but defeated Guinea 1-0 in the western city of Bafoussam earlier on Monday following a terrific second-half strike by Bologna’s Musa Barrow.
Gambia then kept the game on with 10 men at the end after Yusupha Njie was sent off.