Tag: Cameroon

Portugal wins World Cup playoff to join USWNT in Group E

The Portuguese reached the Women’s World Cup for the first time ever

The U.S. women’s national team finally knows its last opponent in Group E of the World Cup this summer: Portugal.

The European nation reached its first ever Women’s World Cup by defeating Cameroon 2-1 in a playoff at Waikato Stadium in Hamilton, New Zealand on Wednesday.

Portugal opened the scoring through Diana Gomes, but Cameroon equalized in the 89th minute with a goal by Ajara Nchout. Just as it appeared the game was headed for extra time, Portugal was awarded a stoppage-time penalty after Cameroon defender Estelle Johnson was whistled for a handball in the box.

Portugal defender Carole Costa stepped up and converted from the spot to seal a dramatic win.

With the win, Portugal will join the USWNT, Vietnam and the Netherlands in Group E.

The USWNT will face Portugal in its group finale on August 1 at Eden Park in Auckland. It will be the 11th all-time meeting between the two teams, with the U.S. having won all 10 previous matches by an aggregate score of 39-0.

Most recently, the USWNT defeated Portugal 1-0 in a June 2021 friendly, with Sam Mewis scoring the game’s only goal.

In Wednesday’s other playoff, Haiti joined Portugal as a first-time Women’s World Cup qualifier by defeating Chile 2-1.

The World Cup field will be completed on Wednesday night U.S. time, when Panama faces Paraguay for the 32nd and final spot in the tournament.

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Switzerland’s Breel Embolo refuses to celebrate goal vs. Cameroon, his birth nation

The Switzerland forward was born in in Cameroon’s capital Yaoundé

Switzerland striker Breel Embolo was full of emotion after his winning goal against Cameroon, for a variety of reasons.

Scoring any goal at a World Cup is a milestone but for Embolo, Thursday’s strike in the 48th minute of an eventual 1-0 win went much deeper.

Embolo was born in Cameroon’s capital Yaoundé and moved to France at age five, before settling in Switzerland shortly afterwards. The Monaco striker has referred to himself as Cameroon’s biggest fan.

Prior to the game, Embolo spoke about how special the occasion would be.

“It’s very special. It’s my hometown and my mum and my dad come from there, my family, most of them come from there, so it’s a special game for me and my family,” Embolo said.

But once the game started the forward had a job to do, and he did it well.

Embolo got on the end of a Xherdan Shaqiri cross and powered home a finish from close range, before raising his arms in a muted, if not apologetic celebration.

“I told him, ‘Breel, friendship until the start, then they are your opponents,'” said Switzerland coach Murat Yakin after the game. “Football writes such stories but he completed his mission.”

Watch Embolo’s goal vs. Cameroon

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Embiid was named Eastern Conference …

Embiid was named Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month just three days before Cameroon defeated Egypt 2-1 in the 2017 final; a match-up which, if all things fall into place, could happen again on Sunday, February 6th. “The excitement level has always been huge,” Embiid tells CNN Sport’s Amanda Davies about his love of the Cameroon national team dating back to childhood. “The crazy thing is that when Cameroon would always play, anytime they would score, everybody would just scream. You could hear the whole country just scream.”

Cameroon’s success at AFCON …

Cameroon’s success at AFCON notwithstanding, the fortunes of a football team pale in comparison to the deaths which occurred at the Olembe Stadium in Yaoundé last Monday due to a stadium crush. At least eight people were killed and 38 injured during the Round of 16 game between Cameroon and Comoros. A somber Embiid says: “I’m a man of God, so I pray for those families to find peace and also for their loved ones to find peace and be at peace. It is tragic that it happened and I’m extremely sorry for it.” Given the horrific events, what would it mean to Embiid and Cameroon if the team does go on to lift the trophy? “As a country, we’ve been through a lot,” he reveals. “We haven’t had any competition [held] over there for a long time, so to be able to finally get it and to be able to win, I think is going to be huge for us.”

As for the big man himself, when asked …

As for the big man himself, when asked what would mean more to him — Cameroon triumphing at AFCON or Embiid winning MVP — he smiles. “That’s tough! I want both — both would be great! “It would have been a better question if you were to ask me between Cameroon winning or me winning a championship!” Asked then which he would prefer, Embiid said, “Both would be great, like I said, I’m a competitor — I want to win.”

Joel Embiid: So far, my biggest efforts …

Joel Embiid: So far, my biggest efforts have been in Cameroon and Philadelphia, the two places I call home. My very first initiatives were focused on my Arthur Embiid & Angels Foundation, inspired by the memory of my brother Arthur, and established to protect and unite disadvantaged children in Cameroon. We wanted to partner with a well-established organization in Cameroon and did so with UNICEF to help children in need. I’ve since also worked with my incredible partner Under Armour as it relates to efforts in Philly, including a court refurbishment in my brother Arthur’s name at the Boys & Girls Club of Philadelphia.