The 30-year-old defender calls time on his international career having earned six caps for the Indomitable Lions

Cameroon and Gazisehir Gaziantep defender Jean Armel Kana-Biyik has retired from international football.

The former France youth international quits his African national team after making six appearances, the last being at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) finals when the Indomitable Lions drew 0-0 with Ghana.

In announcing his decision, the France-born defender said he needs to focus on his club career with Turkish Super Lig side Gazisehir Gaziantep, as well as paving way for upcoming players.

“After a long reflection, I’ve decided to bring an end to my international career,” BBC quoted Kana-Biyik as having announced on social media.

“I’m making way for younger players and I’ll focus on my club career. But I’m proud to have donned the prestigious Cameroon jersey with its rich history.”

He is the son of former Cameroon international defender Andre Kana-Biyik and has had previous club stints in France with Le Havre, Rennes and Toulouse.

Kana-Biyik might not have enjoyed a fluent international career, having quit the national team in 2014 after being snubbed for the 2014 Fifa World Cup.

He, however, came out of retirement and managed to feature at the 2019 Afcon in Egypt.

Source: Goal.com

Five-time African champion Cameroon has hired former Portugal international Toni Conceicao as its new national team coach.

Cameroon’s sports ministry announced Friday that the former right-back, whose full name is António Conceição da Silva Oliveira, was given a two-year contract. He replaces Dutch great Clarence Seedorf, who was fired after a second-round exit at the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations in Egypt.

Cameroon will host the next African Cup in 2021, having last won the title in 2017 under Belgian coach Hugo Broos.

Conceicao made just one appearance for Portugal as a player but has managed a number of clubs in his home country and abroad, including three separate stints at Romanian side Cluj.

His first game with Cameroon will be a friendly against Tunisia on Oct. 12.

Source: Associated Press

Samuel Eto’o’s son Etienne Eto’o Pineda has been called-up to Cameroon’s initial squad for the Under-17 World Cup in Brazil.

The 17-year-old is eligible to play for Spain, where he was born, but is now expected to commit to playing for his father’s country of Cameroon.

He was not part of the squad that won the Under-17 Africa Cup of Nations in Tanzania earlier this year to qualify for the World Cup that begins on 26 October.

The striker is currently the captain of the under-17 team at Spanish club Mallorca, one his father’s former clubs.

Samuel Eto’o, who retired from football earlier this month, played for Cameroon under-17’s but was also a member of the senior national team before his 17th birthday.

The Cameroon Football Federation is waiting for clearance from Mallorca for Etienne to join the squad’s Under-17 World Cup Cup training camp at the Caf Centre of Excellence in Yaounde.

The team is expected to continue gearing up in Istanbul, Turkey from the 20-27 September before heading to Brasilia for their last training camp.

At their second World Cup the Cameroonians will play Argentina, Spain and Tajikistan in Group E in Brazil.

During their maiden appearance at the World Cup in 2003 in Finland, Cameroon exited the tournament in the group stages undefeated with the highpoint of their participation an exciting 5-5 tie with Portugal.

Source: BBC

The resolution to suspend local football was taken after a meeting at the headquarters of Fecafoot on August 22

The Cameroon Football Federation (Fecafoot) has taken the step to halt the Professional Football League of Cameroon (LFPC) effective immediately due to the “serious and repeated violation of its obligations, as stipulated in Article 14 paragraph 1a of the Statutes Fecafoot, and Article 2 of its own Statutes “.     

Fecafoot’s decision was made after their Executive Bureau met on Thursday to deliberate over various issues pertaining to football in the country.

Consequently, league football, originally scheduled to return in early September, has been pushed back to mid-October with another meeting of the federation’s Executive Board slated to be held on September 3.

The major agenda of next month’s meeting will be a review of the situation surrounding Cameroonian football, as well as the resumption of its major leagues, Elite One and Elite Two.

Source: Goal.com

Cameroon has fired coach Clarence Seedorf and assistant coach Patrick Kluivert after the defending champion’s early exit at the African Cup of Nations.

They had been in their jobs for less than a year but were removed Tuesday, just over a week after Cameroon lost 3-2 to Nigeria in the round of 16 at the African Cup in Egypt.

The failed African state is due to host the next African Cup in 2021.

Seedorf was an outstanding player who won Champions League titles with Ajax, Real Madrid and AC Milan.

He’s found coaching much more difficult.

The 43-year-old former Netherlands international also had unsuccessful spells in charge at Milan, Shenzhen in China and Deportivo La Coruna. He lasted less than six months in each of those club jobs.

Source: AFP with additional editing from Camcordnews

Having failed to guide the Indomitable Lions to a successful title defense in Egypt, the Dutch tactician is uncertain if he will remain in his post

Coach Clarence Seedorf was coy about his Cameroon future after the Indomitable Lions crashed out of the Africa Cup of Nations in the Round of 16.

The reigning African kings were silenced 3-2 by Nigeria in a devastating result which saw Seedorf’s men surrender a one goal lead in Alexandria.

The result has led to speculation the Dutch legend could be shown the door after his Afcon failure. However, Seedorf himself is uncertain of what the future holds.

“Maybe you want to give us a few days,” he told the media.

“The first thing is I’m very sorry for the boys. They have worked really hard and played well but this is football and only one can win in the end.

“It’s not so important in my future. The important thing is what we have built until now; we’ve improved in many aspects on and off the pitch.

“It’s a group that is very united. I hope the people at home can be proud of the fighting spirit we’ve shown.

“Obviously, the disappointment is really big but this is sport. This is the moment where everyone must say we are united and continue to work for the future.”

Source: Goal.com

Defending champions Cameroon played out to a barren draw with Ghana in a hotly contested West African clash of the titans in a Total Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) Egypt 2019 Group F clash in Ismailia on Saturday.

Substitute Kwabena Owusu should have won all three for the Black Stars barely a minute after coming on for Andre Ayew but his cracking shot from the edge of the box came off the crossbar. Andrew Yiadom had a chance five yards from goal a minute later, but saw it saved by Andre Onana.

With the result, Cameroon have moved to four points while Ghana are on two points after back to back draws. The Ghanaians have to beat Guinea Bissau on Tuesday to be certain of a place at the next round.

On the balance of chances, Cameroon should have gone to the break at least one up. A massive save by Richard Ofori four minutes from time and a timely tackle from Jonathan Mensah earlier on ensured the scores were 0-0 after the opening 45 minutes.

Ofori made a brilliant full stretched-save to punch out a shot from Christian Bassogog from inside the box. Ghana were caught in possession with Baba Rahman losing the ball on the left. Karl Toko Ekambi picked up and cut back a cross for Bassogog which was well saved.

Ghana had dodged another bullet on the half hour mark when Mensah, coming in for the suspended John Boye, made a timely tackle to poke the ball off Ekambi’s feet after he was sent through with a delightful backheel flick by Zambo Anguissa.

Ghana were forced to an early sub after 14 minutes when Christian Atsu limped off injured with a hamstring problem after taking an aim at goal off a counter with a low shot from the edge of the area. He was replaced by Samuel Owusu.

Atsu had Ghana’s second chance just after Nuhu Kassim’s shot from a Thomas Partey cut back went over in the eighth minute. In the 28th minute, Mubarak Wakaso swung in a brilliant cross from the left, but Jordan Ayew could not get a vital touch from the edge of the six yard box as he came flying in.

Ghana pressed more in the second half as they looked to earn a first ever win over Cameroon in the Africa Cup of Nations.

Cameroon coach Clarence Seerdof made an attacking change, pulling out defender Gaetan Bong for striker Eric Choupo-Moting while his opposite number Kwesi Appiah responded by throwing in Asamoah Gyan for Kwadwo.

It was Ghana who would finish the game brighter, but nothing to show of in terms of goals.

Total Man of the Match: Andre Franck Zambo Anguissa (Cameroon)

Source: CAFonline

When Gaelle Asheri first started playing soccer in the dirt streets near her home in Cameroon’s capital, she was the only girl on the informal neighbourhood teams which used stones for goal posts and kept score by chalking results on a wall.

Asheri, 17, and her teammate Ida Pouadjeu, 16, are now among the first wave of girls being trained by professional coaches at the Rails Foot Academy (RFA) in Yaounde. It was set up in January to foster female soccer talent in a country where many still see the sport as a man’s game.

“I used to train with boys, so with boys there were some exercises I was not allowed to do because I am a girl,” Asheri said, describing how she was seen as more fragile than her male counterparts.

“But reaching here it was just another world, I was forced to do abdominal exercises, forced to do all harsh work so you reach a level where tears usually come out with sweat.”

The academy gets its name from the train tracks that hem the playing ground and turn into informal stands for the local spectators, who gather to watch the girls’ teams play all-male sides.

Global interest in women’s soccer is growing and FIFA hopes over a billion viewers will tune in to watch the Women’s World Cup in June. Cameroon’s national side, known as the Indomitable Lionesses, was one of three African teams to qualify.

Its star player, Gaelle Enganamouit, was the brains behind RFA – the West African country’s first female soccer academy. Her own experience as a young player in Yaounde showed her that it was important for women to have their own space to train, she told FIFA in January.

The academy currently trains around 70 girls, most of whom come from poor backgrounds and would otherwise not be able to afford even their own soccer boots, said coach Emmanuel Biolo.

“Here they have everything: coaches, jerseys, training equipment, a physiotherapist, and the guidance we give them all the time. Gaelle Enganamouit really wants these kids to be the next generation,” he said.

Asheri attends the academy on Saturday mornings and after school on Wednesdays, changing out of her uniform – a belted blue knee-length dress – into her team’s matching kit.

She is studying for her final baccalaureate exams, but the dream for her and Pouadjeu is to play soccer at a professional level like their benefactor.

“I’ve seen Gaelle (Enganamouit) play on TV. I’ve never missed one of her matches. She plays so well, I want to be like her,” Pouadjeu said.

Both girls initially faced opposition from family members who were worried that the sport was unfeminine. But neither have been deterred by such prejudice.

“I picked up the ball, I kicked it and I never looked back,” Asheri said, recalling the childhood street soccer games with her male cousins and neighbours. (Writing by Alessandra Prentice Editing by Alexandra Hudson)

Source: The Thomson Reuters Trust