Teranga Lions, Indomitable Lions up for a big clash
The Charles Konan Banny stadium in Yamoussoukro will host one of the biggest games on the continent between Senegal and Cameroon on Friday, 19 January, at 17h00 in the second round of Group C matches of the TotalEnergies CAF Africa Cup of Nations Côte d’Ivoire 2023.
Matches between the Teranga and Indomitable Lions have been characterized by excitement and enthusiasm throughout history.
This will also be the case for the match, bringing them together in the 34th edition of the competition on Ivorian soil.
The defending champion, Senegal, seeks to confirm its strong entry into the competition after winning the first match 3-0 against Gambia.
The objective is to win a second match, allowing them to qualify early for the second round. The Senegalese coach, Aliou Cissé, is counting on the high morale of his squad to continue on the same path of positive results during the confrontation with Cameroon, and he will also be able to benefit from some of his returning players, like Pape Matar Sarr or Gana Gueye.
Cameroon, who finished fourth during the last edition of the competition, intends to win its first game in the tournament and make amends for their slow start, which they drew with Guinea.
Aliou Cisse Senegal Coach
“It was essential to enter the competition with a victory, which encourages the players. We are ready for the second match against a strong team and have prepared well for it. We know Cameroon well, and it is a solid African team.
“Cameroon remains Cameroon. Our match against them is not revenge. Cameroon have already won many continental titles and we are going to face a team motivated to make up for the result they got in the first match.
“We have a competitive group and all players can participate, it doesn’t matter who starts the match, the most important thing is the performance provided. Our team does not suffer from a lack of efficiency, and we scored 3 goals in the first match.
Idrissa Gana Gueye, Senegal midfielder
“We prepared well for this competition and are in good shape. We have been with the coach for a while. He led us to the title in Cameroon. To try to do the same thing again, you have to keep the same state of mind: living well in the group.
Everyone is going in the same direction; that is to say, the Senegalese team wins, listens to the coach’s instructions, lives together, trains well, and is in shape to go as far as possible.
We need 3 points in the match but will not go into details. We must not go into calculations. We will seek victory, and I trust the players that the match against Senegal will be different.
Georges Kevin Nkoudou, Cameroonian striker
“It’s true that Senegal is the favourite, but as I always say we must never bury Cameroon, we remain a great team and a great nation.
“They started this tournament with an excellent victory against Gambia. We had a good match for our part, but unfortunately, we only got one point. We must put this behind us for now and focus on our match against Senegal, which will be very difficult for both teams. We have all the weapons necessary to put them in a more difficult position”.
