Former Liverpool defender Joel Matip has confirmed his retirement from football.

The centre-back departed the Reds in the summer after an eight-year spell that included 201 appearances and multiple major honours with the club.

Signed on a free transfer from Schalke 04 in 2016, Matip was a key figure throughout Jürgen Klopp’s reign as manager, helping to secure a return to Champions League football and starring in the run to glory in the competition in 2019 – including an assist for Divock Origi in the Madrid final against Tottenham Hotspur.

Matip featured as Liverpool went on to add the UEFA Super Cup, and was involved in nine Premier League games in 2019-20 as Klopp’s team emphatically ended the club’s 30-year wait to be crowned English champions again.

After a long-term injury curtailed his 2020-21 campaign, the ex-Cameroon international returned to stellar form as the Reds launched a quadruple bid the following season.

The No.32 clocked up 43 games – his most in a single campaign for the club – and appeared in both finals as the Carabao Cup and Emirates FA Cup were lifted at Wembley, while he and his teammates also finished runners-up in the top flight and Champions League.

He continued to be an important member of the squad in 2022-23 and into the beginning of 2023-24, but a cruel anterior cruciate ligament injury suffered last December prevented him from playing for the club again.

Matip and supporters said farewell to one another at Anfield on the final day of last season, ahead of the expiry of his contract, and he has now confirmed that his playing career has reached a conclusion.

He had previously spent seven years representing Schalke at senior level after progressing through their youth ranks, winning the German cup with the club in 2011.

In international football, Matip made 27 appearances and scored once for Cameroon, with whom he played at the World Cup in 2010 and 2014.

Everybody at LFC wishes Joel and his family the very best for the future.

Source: LFC

Minister of Sports and Physical Education, Narcisse Mouelle Kombi, and the President of the Cameroon Football Federation (Fecafoot), Samuel Eto’o, announced a reshuffle of the Indomitable Lions’ coaching staff in a joint statement on Tuesday, October 1.

The decision was made “to restore the calm desired by Cameroonians around the national football team and in accordance with the directives of the President of the Republic,” the officials said in a joint statement.

The reshuffle affects all levels of the team’s management. Head coach Marc Brys remains in his position, along with assistants Joachim Mununga and Giannis Xilouris. François Omam Biyick and Ashu Cyprian Bessong, previously appointed as assistant coaches by the Sports Minister, are now designated as analyst supervisors. Martin Ndtoungou Mpilé and David Pagou, appointed by Fecafoot, will serve as new assistant coaches. The goalkeeper coach position will be shared between Idriss Carlos Kameni (Fecafoot) and Alioum Boukar (Ministry of Sports).

Dr. Patrick Joël Fotso, appointed team doctor by Fecafoot, will continue in his role, replacing Professor William Ngatchou, who had been nominated by the Minister. Additionally, Fecafoot’s appointees from May 30—Serge Pensy (Deputy National Teams Coordinator), Nicolas Alnoudji (Team Manager), Thierry Ndoh (Team Press Officer), Pierre Arnold Ebolo Abada (Liaison Officer), and physiotherapists Che Awah Daniel and Elias Kaleguem Fomekong—will also remain in their positions. However, a new national team coordinator has been named: former Indomitable Lion Timothée Atouba.

This reshuffle comes after a “series of consultations” aimed at easing ongoing tensions between Fecafoot and the Ministry of Sports. FIFA had sent a letter to the federation in August, stressing the need for “constructive dialogue” between the parties and warning that interference could lead to sanctions. In May, FIFA had recommended revisiting the 2015 agreement between the Ministry of Sports and Fecafoot to clarify their respective roles.

Both the Minister of Sports and the Fecafoot President “urge the Indomitable Lions to seize this renewed sense of calm to work toward reviving Cameroonian football,” while calling on fans to continue supporting the team.

Source: Sbbc

Vincent Aboubakar has joined struggling Turkish club Hatayspor after falling out of favour at league rivals Besiktas, both clubs announced.

“We have signed a one-year contract with experienced striker Vincent Aboubakar,” Hatayspor said in a post on social media.

The 32-year-old rejoined Besiktas in January 2023, after a year and a half with Saudi club Al-Nassr.

Capped over 100 times for Cameroon, Aboubaker won two Turkish league titles with Besiktas in his two spells in 2017 and 2021.

He also won two league titles with Portuguese club Porto and the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations with Cameroon.

Antakya club Hatayspor are second last in the Turkish league.

Source: Citizen digital sports

An impasse in Cameroon’s national men’s football team has been overcome following mediation efforts by the country’s Prime Minister, Joseph Dion Ngute, state media Crtv said on Wednesday.

The Indomitable Lions of Cameroon will host Namibia on Saturday in its opener of Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifier but their training camp has been marred by a wrangle between Cameroon Football Federation (FECAFOOT) and the country’s Ministry of Sports and Physical Education over the venue of the training camp and stadium where the match will take place.

“FECAFOOT wants the match to be played in the town of Garoua while the ministry wants the match to be played in the capital Yaounde. The players were divided and confused. Instead of training, they are attending crisis meetings,” said football analyst, Jean Claude Wakam.

Ngute met with the players and government officials on Wednesday and stated that the match “will be played wherever CAF (Confederation of African Football) decides and where the stadium is and in good shape”, Crtv reported.

The CPDM team has now agreed to play the game in Garoua after the mediation efforts.

Crisis erupted in Cameroon football since April after the country’s Minister of Sports and Physical Education, Narcisse Mouelle Kombi announced the appointment of 61-year-old Marc Brys as head coach. FECAFOOT said it did not agree with the appointment because it “was not involved in the procedure leading to the appointment”.

Both bodies have since tussled over who is in charge of the Indomitable Lions.

Cameroon will play Namibia on Saturday and face Zimbabwe three days later in Kampala.

The country is placed in Group J of the qualifiers, along with Namibia, Kenya, and Zimbabwe.

The 35th edition of AFCON will take place in Morocco next year.

Source: Xinhuanet

Cameroon’s Minister of Football, Professor Narcisse Mouelle Kombi, has landed in Garoua in Cameroon’s northern region where the country’s national team, the Indomitable Lions is expected to clash with the Brave Warriors of Namibia.

Mr. Mouelle Kombi, who is supposed to be the country’s Sports and Physical Education Minister, but has opted to focus on football, was on the same flight with the players and their coach. He has to be by the team to keep on manipulating the players. But his intrigues are known and the players are sick and tired of his stupidity.

Prof. Mouelle Kombi and Coach Marc Brys had vowed that they would not go to Garoua for the match, but they have been obliged by circumstances to eat their own words. It is FECAFOOT that manages football in Cameroon and not the ministry of sports.

The minister who has sown chaos in all other federations wants to take control of FECAFOOT because of the money in football. His plan will not work as he has met someone who knows his rights and wants to clean up FECAFOOT. Cameroonians are smart enough to see through Mouelle Kombi’s charade.

Kombi, whose presence in Garoua is not necessary, is there because he wants to ensure that the technical team he appointed gets access to the stadium. But his team will not sit at the coaching stand because the names of the members of that team are not on the match forms.

Kombi is already staring down the barrel of defeat. He will soon be kicked out of government and he will be remembered for the chaos he has sown in the ministry of sports.

Supposedly a practicing lawyer, Mouelle Kombi has, over the years morphed into a practicing liar just because he wants to feather his nest.

By Soter Tarh Agbaw-Ebai

The Cameroon Football Federation (FECAFOOT) is intensifying efforts to mobilize public support for the Indomitable Lions ahead of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) qualifier against Namibia on September 7. The match, which will take place at the Roumde Adjia Stadium in Garoua, marks the beginning of the 2025 AFCON qualifying campaign. FECAFOOT has launched a social media campaign, urging Cameroonians to unite behind the national team.

On August 30, the federation posted a visual on its Facebook page highlighting the significance of the event with the slogan: “One date, one place, one stake.” This post is part of a broader strategy aimed at mobilizing the Cameroonian public and creating an electrifying atmosphere for the Indomitable Lions during the match.

The federation also released a 53-second video calling for a “sacred union” among the Cameroonian people to support the national team in Garoua. The video aims to spark enthusiasm and encourage widespread mobilization to back the players in their encounter with Namibia. Additionally, Fecafoot shared a visual in Fufulde, a language widely spoken in the northern part of the country, to directly engage local communities and strengthen the sense of unity and support around the team.

This media blitz comes amid confusion and disagreement over the choice of venue for the match. Fecafoot, under the leadership of Samuel Eto’o, chose the Roumde Adjia Stadium in Garoua, citing more favorable weather conditions and support from the Confederation of African Football (CAF) and the Namibian Football Association. However, the Minister of Sports and Physical Education, Narcisse Mouelle Kombi, suggested the match should be held in Yaoundé, the capital. “It has been decided that, in accordance with the high directives of the Presidency of the Republic regarding the proper organization of the match, the Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium in Yaoundé-Mfandena, which is in good functional condition, is, in the current context, the best suited to host this important event,” the minister stated in a communiqué issued on August 23, following a preparatory meeting for the match held at his ministry.

On August 30, Fecafoot revealed the list of 24 players called up by head coach Marc Brys for the matches against Namibia and Zimbabwe (on September 10). The press conference scheduled for this announcement was canceled due to the “unavailability” of the Belgian coach, according to the federation. The Indomitable Lions’ training camp was set to begin yesterday, September 2, 2024. Cameroon is in Group J, alongside Namibia, Kenya, and Zimbabwe.

Source: Sbbc

Cameroon marked their FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup debut with a spirited 2-2 draw against Mexico in their Group A opener in Colombia on Saturday thanks to a brace by Naomi Eto.

The Indomitable Lionesses, representing the hopes of a continent, found themselves on the back foot early when Paola Garcia headed Mexico into the lead after just three minutes at the Estadio Nemesio Camacho in Bogota.

Despite hitting the woodwork twice through Atcha Toko Njoya and Naomi Eto, Cameroon’s first-half woes deepened as Montserrat Saldivar doubled Mexico’s advantage before the break.

However, the second half saw a transformed Cameroonian side emerge. The catalyst for their comeback was the irrepressible Eto, who took the game by the scruff of the neck.

Her first goal, a display of composure and skill as she rounded the Mexican goalkeeper, ignited Cameroon’s resurgence.

With the clock ticking down and Cameroon hopes hanging in the balance, Eto rose highest in the 85th minute to power home a header.

The goal not only secured a precious point for the Indomitable Lionesses but also announced Eto as a new star of African football as she was named the Player of the Match.

This result marks a historic moment for Cameroon but also sends a strong message about the quality of the side in the competition.

The draw breaks Mexico’s streak of wins in opening matches, underlining the competitive nature of this Cameroonian side.

Looking ahead, Indomitable Lionesses will face hosts Colombia in their next group match.

Source: CAF.online