Cameroon’s captain, Vincent Aboubakar, has recovered from injury and is now available for selection ahead of Saturday’s AFCON 2023 round of 16 clash with Nigeria’s Super Eagles.
Aboubakar, 32, did not feature for Cameroon throughout their group games due to an injury he picked during training just few days before the start of the tournament.
According to Cameroon’s media outfit Equinoxe Tv, via actucameroun.com, Aboubakar took part in his team’s intense session which lasted for 90 minutes on Wednesday.
Also Read: AFCON 2023: Milla Predicts Tough Super Eagles, Indomitable Lions Battle
Also, Clinton Njie, was reported to have recovered from injury and is available for the game on Saturday.
If selected, Saturday’s clash will be Aboubakar’s third against the Eagles, after facing them in 2015 and 2017.
His first encounter with the Eagles was in a friendly game in 2015 which Cameroon lost 3-0.
In 2017, he featured against the Eagles in the second leg of the Russia 2018 World Cup qualifiers in Yaoundé, which ended 1-1 with the striker getting his country’s goal from the penalty spot.
Aboubakar was top scorer at the AFCON 2021 held in Cameroon with eight goals.
This season, he has scored four goals, made one assist in 12 games for Turkish Super Lig giants Besiktas.
48 Comments
Calvin Bassey’s food ni.
Wahala wahala wahala (in portable’s voice)…
Na here una go know say 25 years osimhen dey learn work for where this old man dey..u guys will now know why I have been shouting experience in this forum..And na here una go miss Ighalo..
Abeg to answer Ogun B4 you run kolo because of super eagles matter
wey not concern u and yr papa
Lol.If super eagles my country’s team no concern me and my papa na your mama kpekus go concern us??
Na yr rotten mama toto, enemy of progress and dirty son of a kidnapper father and ashawo mother.Stay clear of our darling team
Lol..you wey dem born with watery sperm na dey talk to me like this???
Kai harvertz wey score goal wey Chelsea take win UCL which experience e get for our front three for that final u get experience for that game vinicius wey dey do wonders e get experience?. Mbappe wey win world cup the age of 18 e get experience? These players like osimhen are generational talent that don’t need experience if u are good enough u are old enough
Roger milla wey comot for retirement at age 38 scored 4 goals that led Cameroon to the quarter final of the world cup in 1990 which experience e get?
Your highest goal scorer in this current afcon with 5 goals(equitoria guinea) Emilio lopez age 31 which experience e get?
And mind you this same Abubakar was the highest goal scorer in last afcon at age 31 or so and before that it was Ighalo at age 30…
So my guy wetin experience no fit do doesn’t exist…
Now e be like sey na Nsue @33/34 or so..lol
Onwajunior abi o my guy
Monkey Why are you always going backwards. Very soon you will call for odegbami because he is old. Haba.
My brother if you no know where you dey come from, you no go know where you dey go…
Not good news at all. Aboubacar is highly skillful and intelligent. I hope our clueless coach plays Iheanacho and Osimhen together! Or he can continue with his toothless-attacking-football of Chukwueze and Simon.
Thank you john for spiting fact. You see when we tell them, they will be calling us traitors, Ghanaian etc..
You don’t need to border yourself about what anyone thinks, na their headache. Just make your point and always stand for the truth. As a matter of fact, you become an enemy when you speak facts.
Ok.Thanks my brother
He has incredible speed and above all very powerful @john-1 you didn’t add that…
yooo you guys need to stop.
Cameroun wan rush their star players in cos it’s Nigeria in R16. That’s their loss. I love it when Nigeria is playing an opponent with half fit star players. It becomes minus one.
But if they’re fully fit, then our MFs and DFs will need to carve out a formidable formula to combat the lethal threats of Aboubakar, Njie, Ekambi, and Anguissa in particular.
Thankfully, they have an average coach.
Kel, we have Cameroon’s number. If Peseiro gets his tactics right and the players weave their movements into it seamlessly, victory should be in the bag.
3:1 to Nigeria
I’ve watched Cameroun play and they have a particular weakness in midfield.
There’s a gaping hole either side of Zambo-Anguissa especially when they’re in defensive transition,that’s how Guinea and Senegal both got their goals against Cameroun.
Sometimes the SEs attacks(which is wing oriented) gets slowed in midfield and it affects our median speed per direct attack which in turn affects our field tilt and this is due to either been overtly deep defensively or our midfielders particularly Aribo going backwards.
To solve the above we need Alhassan and Iwobi for their progressive carries,passes and urgency in transition. AND to funnel our attacks through the center quickly.
If the SE play slowly then they allow Cameroun to fall back in shape which will lead to us getting counter attacked which is a frightening sight for every Nigerian especially if Aboubakar is leading the charge.
But if we play quickly through the thirds,then Cameroun won’t know what hit them.
Ooh and Peseiro should do more finishing drills in training to stop this low conversion rate issue we have upfront.
@Codex Spot On!
True @deo. I’m more at ease with Cameroun, given our recent records against them, than I would have been if it had been Guinea. But there’s still that element of unpredictability in knockout games like this, especially if we continue to fluff our chances.
But if all goes well and the SE plays to their strength, yes, I’d say 3 -1 to Nigeria.
Abubakar that has not played any football for months, how will he be fit to face Eagles?
Yi go shock you ma guy. There are levels to this shit.
This is very good. It is so good to have Aboubakar back so that Cameroonians won’t have excuses after the match.
However, if Super Eagles fail to beat this Cameroonian team on saturday, then it is a big shame to Super Eagles, the coach, and the NFF.
The Indomitable Lions is the most weakest team in this tournament, and as I said, I have no hope in Oga Paseiro and his team but as a Nigerian, I wish the the entire best of luck. Ire o. God bless Nigeria!!!
To be honest, the availability of Vincent Abubakar for this encounter only makes it all the more mouth-watering for neutrals but should Nigeria fans be worried?
No doubt Abubakar is a top quality centre forward who can trouble any defence in world football. But the Super Eagles backline should be able to hold their own.
That said, goalkeeper Nwabili has conceded 2 goals (1 chopped off for offside infringement) against strikers of lesser stature to Abubakar.
Also centre back Semi Ajayi seems absent at times. But, on the whole Nigeria’s defensive apparatus has been sturdy: out of the 24 teams in the tournament, only Nigeria, Mali, Senegal and Morocco conceded just 1 goal in the group stages where they played strong opponents.
So, despite a few notable flaws, Cameroon are up against a highly formidable statistically Super Eagles defensive outfit.
Despite have goalkeepers of arguably higher calibre to Nigeria, Cameroon have been porous at the back, conceding 6 goals in the group stages. But they have scored more goals than Nigeria.
All in all, Nigeria have to be favourites on paper to win despite Aboubakar’s return. Although our sharpshooter Victor Osimhen doesn’t have injury problems, fans will be hoping he rediscovers the form that made him the highest goal scorer in qualifiers.
Lol..deo started with confidence but now him don dey go soft..lol…
Njie is the player in Cameroon we should watch. He’s extremely skilful and sneaky. If he plays, he could give their attack some bite. Aboubakar is an old foe. He would meet his waterloo in Bassey.
I’ve never been scared of Cameroon tbh. I’m not sure they have the defense that can withstand SEs attack. Meanwhile, unproductive players like Chukwueze and Aribo should give way for players like Iheanacho and Yusuf. While Iwobi should be allowed to play close to Osimhen and other strikers, Onyeka (I fell in love with Onyedika though the few minutes he played against GNU) and Yusuf should handle Aguissa and his partner in that midfield.
Close attention should be paid to Teko Ekambi too. I trust Aina to neutralize him as well.
All the team needs is a good formation and a result-oriented attack. I don’t see Cameroon stopping us on Saturday. Never! Senegal has shown us how to beat them
Iwobi has been unproductive as well. A player that shot an open chance in the box 18 outside the post, a.player that’s responsible for the only goal conceeded, he has been the most disappointing in the team. Nacho or Moffi should replace Iwobi, Moses or Musa for Chukwueze, and Yusuf for Aribo.
The coach plays him too deep. That’s not his natural position. And that’s down to the defensive formation Peseiro adopted. Check out his influence in the first match. He was at the heart of our attacking moves. That pass that brought Osimhen face to face with EQ keeper can only come from a creative midfielder like him. And that’s because the coach adopted an attacking formation. If Iwobi plays close to goal, there are chances that Osimhen will be fed. Reason I wanna see iheanacho in that match with iwobi behind them.
Why I prefer the initial arrangement against Equatorial Guinea as it was forceful, progressive and strong. As you said it brought out the offensive instinct in Iwobi and kept us on the front foot. It was bold and daring.
Aribo too is an attacking midfielder but you chose to ignore him being played out of position.
The fact is that three players (Chukwueze, Iwobi, and Aribo) have been disappointing.
This is where Balogun would have been very useful. Tough, skillful, technical and no-nonsense. Glad that Bassey is getting to that level. The SE defence looks good to match all oppositions. Onyeka and Yusuf in the midfield. A fit Nacho/Moffi for Iwobi, Moses/Musa on the right, Lookman on the left, Osi9 as striker.
Wehhhh my Naija brothers you forget that Cameroon made it through the group stages experimenting players, you wait and see what this team did to Brazil, pull it up against you.
Hahaha wuna go explain explain tire. The CONTINENT is here. David vs Goliath, na one stone slingshot na. We will send you to bed at 11pm tomorrow.
Bassey will have this guy in his Pocket. Aboubakar Aboubakar story. My only thing is I am not worried of his threat he poses us. My thing is Cameroon can afford to use him now because they have sense they kept him in the squad and knew he wil come in handy when it matters most but, Nigeria coach will send a La Liga Player back in a haste after so many injuries in the SE Team to other key players only for La Liga player to be fit before we have even played our second group game lol. Now serious teams are pulling out thier weapons.
Let us just hope Pesiero does not sell Nigeria out by not Utilizing Iheanacho and Moffi in this game.
Ihenacho, some media wrote, refused to come in against GNB telling the coach the time was limited. We might as well not see him tomorrow.
No coach likes a player bigger than him. I never wanted half fit Ihenacho in the first place.
He might apologize though because Leicester is stubbornly waiting for him for his “disobedience”.
Peserio is adopting 3-4-3 going forward in the guise that if we are not scoring, we shouldn’t concede either
Half Fit Iheanacho My Man Why must you Nigerians be so Naive So who is more fit Aboubakar or Iheanacho? TELL ME!!!!!!!!!… Guy If I am Iheanacho I will also Refuse conming in in 82 mins and 8 mins to go. When I was watching an attack struggle for almost 90 mins with no clear cut goal scoring chance.
Keep telling yourself Iheanacho is half fit the same Iheanacho will walk back into Leieceter City squad the following week if Nigeria is knockout. Nigeria media knows how gullble Nigerian fans are and the NFF and the Media work hand in hand to keep shoving shit down our throats because they know most fans like you will eat it up no questions asked.
ANd Again HALF FIT IHEANACHO or Terem Moffi are 100% more useful that fully fit Musa or Onuachu or even Moses Simon
“When I was watching an attack struggle for almost 90 mins with no clear cut goal scoring chance.” and knowing full well I am Stronger than Most of those players wasting chances up and dan! @Sly The Last proper Goal Nigeria Scored in any Match Who scored It?????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????
Happy to see Vincent aboubakar back in the den.He is a prolific player. He is very talented and skillful. Nigeria has a good defense line but should watch out for the black invader whom when having a good game, is very lethal. It shall be an open game , for both sides have competing talents.
My Starting 11 vs Cameroon
In a 3-5-2 formation
Gk – Nwabali
CBs – Ekong, Omeruo, Bassey
WBs – Aina(r), Moses Simon(l)
CMs – Yusuf, Frank
AM – Iwobi
FWs – Iheanacho, Osimhen
Subs
Simon》lookman(joker)
Iwobi》Moffi(Moffi swaps place with kelechi)
Frank》Onyedika
Aina》Musa
Osimhen》Onuachu
@Cuteprince Nice list however, NO Need for Musa or Onuachu in this game even as Subs as they CAN! Add Nothing to this tough encounter Trust me. Musa and paul will just come in and hand the possession back to the opposition (in the case of Musa) or slow the transition downand Giveaway Possession (In the case of Paul. The other Subs will suffice besides Lookman name must be the first name on Subs list not Simon moses infact it is even debatable if Lookman should start he does deserve it.
@Ugo Iwunze… for always hating and unreasonably seeing nothing good in Pau Onuachu shows you are very shallow with your football knowledge.If I may ask how old are you truly and when did you start watching professional football? I am beginning to really see no substance in your post.
@JimmyBall I know your love for Paul Onuachu however International Ball is not his domain, SO as he has proved with England EPL meaning High Level Ball he struggles. We need not forget that we are only Making Do with Paul due to high profile Injuries and Lack of current form of some other Players that are higher up the Pecking Order than PAul and rightly so. i.e Victor Boniface, Taiwo Awoniyi, Gift Orban and plain bad Judgement from the Coach i.e. Akor Adams and Umar Sadiq the judgement of the latter being almost Laughable. note I did not mention Dessers as I feel they are on the same Level Desser’s and Paul as Desser’s like Paul also proved to struggle in a Top 5 League.
@Ugo my guy, I purposely did the Simon/lookman for tactical reason… Simon is a player for the big occasions and helps alot defensively too… for Onuachu we must rest Osimhen at some point when we are leading…
For Musa his experience is needed at the 70th minute to play the last 20 minutes… and who knows his speed may come in handy
Nwabili
Ajayi Omeruo Bassey
Aina Onyeka Yusuf Simon
Nacho/Iwobi Lookman
Osimhen
Only one of Nacho or Iwobi on the starring lineup because both are not fast and not good at tracking back to defend.