Cameroon fought back to secure a thrilling 3-2 win over The Gambia to book their place in the last 16 of the Africa Cup of Nations tournament.
The five-time winners got second place in Group C based on goals scored.
The next game for Rigobert Song’s team is on Saturday at the Felix Houphouet Boigny Stadium in Abidjan against Nigeria.
With a goal in the 93rd minute, the Scorpions seemed to have ended Cameroon’s chances, but it was called off for handball.
France beat Guinea 2-0 to win the group. Cameroon moved ahead of Senegal in the final table, but the Syli National moved on as one of the four best third-place teams.
The Gambia’s coach, Tom Saintfiet, quit after they were eliminated without a point. However, the world’s 126th-ranked team, which was the lowest-ranked team in the competition, was about to extend his stay with a huge upset when Ebrima Colley curled them ahead for the first time, making it 2-1 from a tight angle with less than six minutes of normal time left.
If Saintfiet’s brave team had won, they would have been in the running to go through as one of the third-placed teams and sent Cameroon out of the tournament. However, two minutes later, James Gomez made it 2-2 by putting the ball past his own custodian while attempting to intercept Enzo Tchato’s cross.
Cameroon moved into second place a minute into extra time when Christopher Wooh rose to head a corner past Baboucarr Gaye’s dive. They were almost out of the tournament.
On the very last play of the game, Muhammed Sanneh, one of Saintfiet’s five substitutions, put in a cross that was thought to be a goal but was ruled out for handball by VAR.
The underdogs, who are ranked 80 spots below Cameroon and made it to the quarterfinals on their first try in 2021, got off to a good start that hinted at the drama to come.
Song, the head coach of Cameroon, made four changes to his starting lineup. The most well-known was dropping Andre Onana and putting back Fabrice Ondoa, who is related to the Manchester United custodian.
Soon, Ondoa had to make a save. Ali Sowe’s angled shot was blocked at the near post, and the first half was very close, with the West African country having the best chances.
Cameroon forward Karl Toko Ekambi almost scored with a close-range shot on the turn, but Jacob Mendy blocked it just in time. Ondoa then jumped on Yankuba Minteh’s shot when he was unmarked at the far post and headed Musa Barrow’s corner goalward.
After Gambia put a lot of pressure on, Ondoa seemed to be pleading with his teammates to improve their defence, but Cameroon only got better after halftime.
Five minutes into the second half, Indomitable Lions forward Georges-Kevin Nkoudou hit the crossbar with a shot. Six minutes later, Toko Ekambi headed Nkoudou’s searching cross in to break the tie.
The Gambia quickly tied the game, though, when Ablie Jallow volleyed in Alieu Fadera’s cross while no one was looking.
Toko Ekambi hit the crossbar with a rocket of a shot before Colley’s strike sent shockwaves through the Stade de la Paix. It was the first of three goals in seven minutes that sealed Cameroon’s fate in an amazing finish.
Photo by Weam Mostafa/BackpagePix
