January 19, (THEWILL) – Senegal progressed to the knockout stage of the Africa Cup of Nations with a comfortable 3-1 victory over Cameroon. Spearheaded by a star attacking performance from Marseille striker, Ismaila Sarr, the defending AFCON champions proved too strong for a lacklustre Cameroonian side.
Sarr opened the scoring in the 16th minute with a deflected strike after the Cameroon defence failed to deal with a corner. The Indomitable Lions created no chances in the first half and struggled to contain Senegal’s attacking talent. Six minutes before halftime, Sarr played in Sadio Mané but his effort was blocked by Enzo Tchato.
The second half followed a similar pattern, with Senegal continuing to control proceedings. Sarr turned provider in the 71st minute when his low cross was converted by Habibou Diallo to make it 2-0. Cameroon finally got on the scoresheet through Jean-Charles Castelletto’s 83rd minute header but Georges-Kevin Nkoudou missed a golden late chance to equalise. Mané then sealed a comfortable Senegal victory in added time.
With progression to the last 16 now secured ahead of their final group match against Gambia, manager Aliou Cisse will be delighted with his side’s commanding performance. For Cameroon manager, Rigobert Song, advancement hangs delicately in the balance with just one point from two matches.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
