With Cameroonian football fans still having a heavy heart following the
Indomitable Lions World Cup elimination, club football returned around the globe
and Cameroon’s players were scoring plenty of goals this past weekend. Pierre
Webo and Samuel Eto’o in Spain, Albert Meyong and William Modipo in Portugal,
Mathias Chago in Croatia, Joel Epalle in Greece, Patrick Suffo in Norway, Simon
Atangana in Russia, Emile Mbamba and Joel Tchami in Israel, Francois Endene
Elokan in Poland and Francis Kioyo in Germany got on the scoresheets this
weekend. In addition Joseph Desire Job’s Saudi Arabian club advanced to the Asian
Champions League final.
Spain
Pierre Achille Webo came off the bench in the 61st minute of Osasuna’s match
with Celta Vigo and in the 83rd minute received a well weighted through ball
to beat Celta’s offside trap and the on rushing opposing goalie to shoot into
the net for Osasuna’s 2nd goal in their 2-0 victory which moved them into a tie
with Real Madrid for first place in Spain’s La Liga.
Samuel Eto’o also was involved in the scoring action in Barcelona’s match at
Deportivo La Coruña. Eto’o was on the receiving end of a beautiful
triangulation of passes between Ronaldinho, Deco and himself in the 41st minute in order
for the Cameroonian striker to net Barcelona’s opening goal. Later in the
match he passed to Ronaldinho who then went in alone after a beautiful
individual move to score Barcelona’s 2nd. Later Eto’o’s pass set up Deco who was
fouled inside the penalty area which Ronaldinho converted for Barcelona’s 3rd
goal. Deportivo fought back, however, and emerged with a 3-3 tie.
Carlos Kameni
was in goal for Espanyol as they lost 2-0 to Cadiz. In the 2nd Division,
Daniel Ngom Kome came on as a midfield sub after 31 minutes but his club Ciudad de
Murcia lost 2-1 to Hercules. Indomitable Lion right back Benoit Angbwa and 19
year old right sided attacker Momo Epande are currently on trial with Alaves
in Spain’s First Division.
France
In France’s Ligue 1 young midfielder Landry Nguemo continues to impress.
This past week he started in midield and gave a strong performance as his club
Nancy defeated Toulouse 2-0. Playing in midfield for Toulouse but being
outshown by his young compatriot was Achille Emana.
Stephane M’Bia, another
teenager, also played well this week at right back for Rennes in his club’s 1-0 win
over Strasbourg. A third Cameroonian teenager, centerback Sebastien Bassong,
also played this week starting in Metz’ 3-0 loss to Monaco. Also starting that
match for Metz was forward Herve Tum, returning to Metz’ lineup for the first
time this season after recovering from injury.
Modeste Mbami played in central midfield for PSG as they lost the French
derby against rivals Marseille 1-0. Bill Tchato played left back for Nice in
their 2-2 tie with Lens.
In Ligue 2, left back Jacques Momha returned to Laval’s lineup playing in his
club’s 3-1 loss to Creteil where Eugene Ekobo started at centerback. In
Montpellier’s 3-1 win over Istres, Valery Mezague played midfield for Montpellier
while Patrick Leugueun and Pierre Njanka were Istres’ centerbacks. Marcus
Mokake came on as a 57th minute attacking sub for Sedan as they defeated Le Havre
2-0.
The previous week while most leagues were in hiatus for the international
break there were matches in Ligue 2. Eugene Ekobo played centerback as Creteil
lost 1-0 to Reims. Marcus Mokake played the first 74 minutes at forward for
Sedan
and Valery Mezague the entire match in midfield for Montpellier as Sedan
won 2-0. Jacques Momha was Laval’s left back in their 1-0 win over Brest and
Patrick Leugueun started at centerback and Pierre Njanka entered as a defensive
sub after 46 minutes as Istres lost 1-0 to Gueugnon.
England
In England’s Premier League Lauren played a solid match at right back but his
Arsenal club lost 2-1 to West Brom. Eric Djemba Djemba came on as a 84th
minute sub for Aston Villa as they beat crosstown rivals Birmingham City 1-0. In
the Championship, Mathias Doumbe started at centerback for Plymouth as they
drew 1-1 with Sheffield Wednesday.
Germany
In the German Bundesliga, Timothee Atouba played left back for Hamburg as
they surprisingly lost 1-0 to Wolfsburg. Lucien Mettomo played the first half at
centerback for Kaiserslautern in their 3-3 tie with Borussia Dortmund.
In
Bundesliga 2, Francis Kioyo scored on a header in the 32nd minute as Energie
Cottbus defeated Unterhaching 2-0.
Italy
In Serie A, Pierre Wome entered as a sub in midfield for Inter Milan in the
73rd minute of his club’s 5-0 win over Livorno. In Serie B, Alain Bono also
came on as a midfield sub but in the 76th minute of Ternana’s scoreless draw
with Torino. Thomas Job Iyock came on as a 68th minute sub for Cremonese as they
lost 2-1 to Avellino.
Portugal
In Portugal’s Superliga, Albert Meyong continued his good start to the
season, scoring in the 42nd minute but his club Belenenses lost 2-1 to Naval.
Rudolph Douala played winger for Sporting Lisbon before being subbed out at
halftime in their 1-0 loss to Academica. As a result of the loss Sproting’s manager
and president both resigned. William Andem was in goal as Boavista beat Gil
Vicente 2-0.
There is yet another Cameroonian player in Portugal’s 2nd Division. He is 26
year old defender William Modipo who plays for Aves. This weekend Modipo
scored Aves’ opening goal in their 4-2 win over Moreirense. Playing defensive
midfield for the losing club was Clement Beaud. Nicolas Alnoudji also played
defensive midfield as his club Olhanense beat Gondomar 2-1. Yohanna Buba played
centerback for Estoril in their 3-2 victory over Ovarense.
came on as a sub at forward after 59 minutes for Barreirense as they tied 1-1
with Varzim.
Turkey
In Turkey Rigobert Song and Alioum Saidou played for leaders Galatasaray as
they beat Erciyesspor 2-1. Fellow Indomitable Lion Souleymanou Hamidou was in
goal for Denizlispor as they played a 1-1 tie with Manisaspor. The 4th Indomtable Lion
player in Turkey is Raymond Kalla who came on as a sub in defense in the final 15
minutes of Sivasspor’s 1-0 win over Genclerbirligi. Jean Emmanuel Effa Owona
enetred as an offensive sub in the last 13 minutes of Malatyaspor’s 1-0 loss
to Rizespor. Herve Zengue played in midfield for Ankaragucu as they lost 2-1
to 2nd place Fenerbahce.
Greece
In Greece, Joel Epalle played in midfield and scored Iraklis’ only goal in
the 37th minute as they lost 4-1 to new league leaders Skoda Xanthi.
Belgium
Pius Ndiefi missed Germinal Beerschot’s 4-1 loss to Mouscron as he was back
in Cameroon attending his father’s funeral. Camfoot sends it’s condolences to
Ndiefi and his family on their loss. Patrice Noukeu played in midfield for
Mouscron in the match against Ndiefi’s team.
Matthieu Assou Ekotto played in
midfield as Standard Liege beat Racing Genk 1-0. Both Eric Matoukou and Justice
Wamfor missed the game for Genk due to injuries.
Israel
In Israel, forward Emile Mbamba scored Maccabi Petah Tikva’s only goal in the
70th minute as they drew 1-1 with Hapoel Tel Aviv. Joel Tchami also played
forward and scored Hapoel Kfar Saba’s only goal in the 80th minute as they lost
2-1 to league leaders Maccabi Haifa. Ernest Etchi played centerback for SC
Ashdod as they lost 1-0 to Maccabi Tel Aviv.
Russia
In Russia Simon Atangana came off the bench in the 59th minute as a sub at
forward for Terek Grozny and scored his club’s 2nd goal in the 70th minute in
their 3-2 loss to Rostov.
Jerry Christian Tchuisse played right back for FK
Moscow as they lost 4-1 to Kryilya Sovetov. Serge Branco was the left wing back
for Shiinik Yaroslavl before leaving after 63 minutes in his club’s 0-0 tie
with Lokomotiv Moscow. Coming on as a midfield sub at the start of the 2nd half
for Lokomotiv was Stephane Andre Bikey.
Austria
Patrice Mbock played 59 minutes in defense for SV Pasching in their 2-0 loss
to Sturm Graz. Entering as a sub after 72 minutes for Sturm Graz was forward
Ahmadou Rabihou.
Switzerland
Armand Deumi played centerback for Thun in their 5-1 win over St. Gallen.
Jean Pierre Tcheutchoua was the centerback for Aarau in their 1-0 win over Young
Boys Berne. Augustine Simo came on as an offensive sub for Aarau after 79
minutes.
Eastern Europe
Central midfielder Mathias Chago has made a great impact in his first season
with Dinamo Zagreb in Croatia.
This weekend Chago played a good all around
match both attacking and defending and eventually scored Dinamo’s only goal, as
they maintained their league lead, with a 1-0 win over Pula SC. In the 77th
minute Chago fired a shot from outside the box for the goal. Pierre Boya
played forward for Partizan Belgrade in Serbia & Montenegro but his club lost the
Belgrade derby 2-0 to rivals Red Star. Goalkeeper Daniel Bekono, who has been
a reserve this season for Beroe in Bulgaria, came on as a substitute after 32
minutes with his club trailing CSKA Sofia 3-0. In the end CSKA won the game
7-0.
In Poland, Francois Endene Elokan also came in off the bench, entering as
a midfield sub after 80 minutes, and scoring in the 89th his club’s final
goal as Pogon Szczecin beat Groclin Gdzinsk 3-1. In Latvia, Jean Paul Ndjoumeck
played centerback as Ventspils defeated Jurmala 1-0.
Scandinavia
In Norway forward Patrick Suffo scored in the 53rd minute of Odd Grenland’s
2-2 draw with Ham Kam. Playing 58 minutes in midfield for Odd Grenland was
Somen A Tchoyi. Gustave Bahoken played left back for Aalesund as they won a high
scoring 5-4 match over Start Kristiansted. In Sweden Joseph Elanga played
left back for Malmo as they lost 2-1 to Gefle. With the loss, defending
champion Malmo lost all possibility to retain their Swedish crown. In Finland,
midfielder Marc Ndikumade played 52 minutes as TP 47 lost 4-0 to Tampere United.
Asia
In the Asian Champions League semifinals, Joseph Desire Job came on as a 2nd
half sub for his Saudi club Al Ittihad in their 2-0 win (7-0 on aggregate)
over South Korea’s Busan I-Park. With the win Al Ittihad advances to play Al Ain
of the UAE for the Asian club title. In Asia’s AFC Cup semifinals, forward
Julius Pongla Akosah scored in the 24th minute but his Hong Kong club Sun Hei
FC lost 3-2 (6-2 on aggregate) to Lebanon’s Al Nejmeh.
North America
In the United States’ Major League Soccer the regular season concluded and
Alain Nkong played two matches in the past week. Nkong started at attacking
midfield and set up his club’s only goal in the 33rd minute, and nearly scored
himself in the 49th, as Colorado Rapids drew 1-1 with Chivas USA. Later Nkong
again playing in midfield, saw 72 minutes of action as Colorado defeated Real
Salt Lake 1-0. Colorado ended up in 3rd position in the league’s Western
Conference and in the league quarterfinals will play home and away against FC
Dallas. For the season, Nkong played in 28 matches (out of 32), starting in 20 of
them, playing a total of 1733 minutes, scored 5 goals, made 4 assists (passes
to goal) and picked up 9 yellow cards.
South America
In Uruguay, Duplex Kamga played in central midfield for Wanderers as they
drew 1-1 with Miramar Misiones. Alain Yombi (right back) and Abdul Njankou
(centerback) played for Plaza Colonia in their scoreless tie with Danubio.
North Africa
Franck Ongfiang played attacking midfield for Esperance Tunis in their
Tunisian league match against namesakes Esperance Zarzis which ended 0-0. In
Algeria, Stephane Nankop and Jean Paul Yontcha played forward for CABBA as their
team lost 1-0 to US Biskra.
