Cameroon’s women’s team will meet Chile on April 10 and 13, 2021 in Antalya (Turkey) during an intercontinental qualifier for the Olympic Games. Cameroon will try to land the ultimate ticket to Tokyo football tournaments.
On March 10, 2020, Cameroonian football players fell from the top. The Indomitable Lionesses lost 2-1 to Lusaka in the final round of the Tokyo Games qualifiers. They thus left Zambian women with the only direct ticket reserved for Africa for the Olympic women’s tournament.
However, Ajara Nchout and his partners had not lost everything. They were entitled to a catch-up session with an intercontinental play-off against the Chileans, scheduled for April 9 (first stage), then (return) on April 15 … 2020.
A year later, and after several launches related to the Covid pandemic, we are here. Africans and South Americans will compete, but in Antalya, Turkey, always for health reasons.
“We know it will not be an easy game”, assures striker Gabrielle Onguéné. Not because we are afraid of the opponent, but just because we respect them. If they arrived at this roadblock, it is because they are cutting back on work ”.
A status to defend
Star striker Ajara Nchout agrees: “We are aware of the matches we will play against the Chileans. These are fantastic matches and we know that this is our last chance to go to Tokyo. ”
Alain Djeumfa, coach of Cameroon for women, has increased the number of trainings in recent months. He tried to create a symbiosis between the old guard, who competed in the 2012 Olympics and the 2015 and 2019 World Cups, and the new generation. But the technician also had to insist on another aspect. “We must also focus on the girls’ mental preparations, because they must remember that this is a very important phase in their careers and especially for Cameroonian women’s football as well as for Cameroonian football more generally,” he stressed.
In fact, the Cameroonians have a status to assert, those who have participated in all major competitions – except the 2016 Olympic Games – for a decade. On April 13, they may be the last – just after the Chinese or South Koreans – to validate their ticket to Tokyo. Then, on April 21, the International Football Association draws lots for the Olympic tournaments.
Interview with Étienne Arthur Deffo,
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