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AFCON 2023: Five Cameroon stars Super Eagles must be wary of

The 2023 AFCON tournament is officially in its knockout stages, with sixteen teams ready to battle it out. A loss at this point means there are no makeups and the end of the tournament for the countries involved.

The Super Eagles of Nigeria will take on the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon tomorrow, and Soccernet.ng looks into five Cameroon players Jose Peseiro’s men should watch out for as they possess the ability to hurt the team.

1. Vincent Aboubakar

The former Porto striker was said to be ruled out of the AFCON 2023 tournament with a hamstring injury but was included in Rigobert Song’s squad anyway. With the clash against Nigeria on the cusp, the Besiktas man is back to full fitness, and should he feature, the AFCON 2021 top goalscorer will look to add to his tally of 37 goals for Cameroon.

Vincent about to be sent-off after scoring a goal at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

2. André-Frank Zambo Anguissa 

A crucial part of the Napoli team that won the Scudetto for the first time in over three decades, Anguissa’s presence in the midfield poses a threat to the Super Eagles. He is press-resistant and almost impossible to wrestle off the ball. He completed 100% of his dribbles in Cameroon’s 3-2 win over Gambia which secured their round of sixteen spot.

Anguissa taking on Switzerland’s Granit Xhaka.

3. GeorgesKévin Nkoudou

The versatile Damac winger has scored fourteen goals and created another four in fifteen starts in the Saudi Pro League. He came up trumps in Cameroon’s win over Gambia with two assists. The former Tottenham Hotspur winger plays primarily on the left flank and will be a figure of worry for Ola Aina.

Georges-Kévin Nkoudou taking on a Russian defender.

4. Frank Magri

Magri stepped in to cover for the injured Aboubakar and scored in Cameroon’s 1-1 draw against Guinea, and the Toulouse has scored four goals in the French Ligue this term. Primed to start, his pace and trickery will be something of a worry for the Nigerian central defenders all game.

Frank Magri celebrating after scoring in Cameroon’s clash against Guinea.

5. Karl Toko Ekambi

Ekambi plies his trade as a striker in the Saudi Pro League but has been played out wide at the AFCON 2023 tournament in Ivory Coast. The former Lyon man broke the deadlock in Cameroon’s clash against Gambia and will have eyes on another when they take on Nigeria tomorrow evening at the Stade Félix Houphouët-Boigny.

Ekambi in action for the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon.

This post was last modified on %s = human-readable time difference 6:09 pm

Adefolahan Guerreiro

Adefolahan is a multilingual journalist and writer at Soccernet Nigeria. With a track record of involvement in College sports, Adefolahan is focused on crafting engaging football content and utilising his language skills and extensive sports knowledge to enhance content accessibility for a global audience. He has interviewed Nigerian stars like Finidi George, Junior Lokosa, and Abraham Onahi Ogbu.

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