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Josh Gross
Cameroon World Cup Team Preview
Cameroon
FIFA Ranking: 43
Manager: Rigobert Song
Federation: Confederation of African Football
Group: Brazil, Serbia, Switzerland, Cameroon
Odds to win World Cup: +25000, FanDuel
Odds to win Group G: +1700, FanDuel
Odds to advance in Group G: +300, FanDuel
How did Cameroon qualify for the World Cup?
Cameroon won their qualifying group, which gave them a home-and-home series against Algeria. They lost their home match in the first leg 1-0 but stunned Algeria on the road in a 2-1 win in extra time. They ended up booking their ticket to Qatar on away goals after a 2-2 aggregate tie.
Who is Cameroon’s most important player?
Vincent Aboubakar
Aboubakar is third in all time goals scored for Cameroon, behind only Samuel Eto’o and Roger Milla, who are legends in African soccer. He won the Golden Boot in the last African Cup of Nations with eight goals leading his team to a third-place finish. He terrorized opposing defenses in Portugal and Turkey over the last handful of years but is now playing in the Saudi Pro League where his scoring has dropped off slightly with just two goals so far this year.
What are Cameroon’s strengths, weaknesses, style of play and form?
Cameroon have struggled under Rigobert Song and have yet to really determine a true identity. Their strength is Aboubakar and the help he gets from his midfield through guys like Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa, Bryan Mbeumo, and Moumi Ngamaleu. They also have Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting who is in red hot scoring form with Bayern Munich. Their style of play will focus on getting the ball wide and finding a striker in behind the opposing defense. They will likely be forced into playing a low block and counter attacking as they will have a difficult time holding possession.
Their weakness is going to be defense and the fact that they always seem to be on the verge of self-imploding. This team just does not have enough talent or experience to really vie for a spot in the knockout stage especially given the three other teams they will have to go through.
Cameroon lost to both Uzbekistan and South Korea in their two September warm-up games which does not bode well for their World Cup outlook. They tied Jamaica 1-1 on November 9th which is also a questionable result.
What is Cameroon’s World Cup Outlook?
Cameroon face a steep uphill battle to advance out of their group. They have the odds-on favorite and two dark horse European countries to fight through in their group, so even getting more than a point will be a tough task.
Best Cameroon World Cup Bet
The best bet for Cameroon pre-tournament is to finish with 0 points at +320. Three straight losses for this team given their recent form and roster is a solid bet for these odds.
Cameroon Projected World Cup Roster
GK: Devis Epassy, Andre Onana, Simon Ngapandouetnbu
DF: Jean-Charles Castelletto, Enzo Ebosse, Collins Fai, Olivier Mbaizo, Nicolas Nkoulou, Nouhou Tolo, Christopher Wooh
MF: Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa, Samuel Gouet, Martin Hongla, Pierre Kunde, Jerome Ngom, Olivier Ntcham, Gael Ondoua
FW: Vincent Aboubakar, Christian Bassogog, Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting, Karl Toko Ekambi, Bryan Mbeumo, Moumi Ngamaleu, Georges-Kevin Nkoudou, Jean-Pierre Nsame, Marou Souaibou
Group A | Ecuador Senegal Netherlands Qatar
Group B | Iran Wales USA England
Group C | Mexico Saudi Arabia Poland Argentina
Group D | Tunisia Denmark Australia France
Group E | Japan Germany Costa Rica Spain
Group F | Croatia Morocco Canada Belgium
