Cameroon have one more chance to rescue their AFCON 2023 campaign, and will almost certainly need to beat Gambia at Stade de Bouaké on Matchday 3 to have a chance of advancing to the round of 16.
The 2017 AFCON champions have just one point from their first two games in Group C, having drawn with Guinea before losing to Senegal. Fail to win here and they will probably be out of the tournament.
It would be quite a blow for goalkeeper André Onana, who only recently arrived in Ivory Coast. He missed Cameroon’s opener against Guinea due to commitments with Manchester United, and could be back in England without having missed a game for his club unless the Indomitable Lions can get through.
Rigobert Song’s men were well beaten 3-1 by Senegal on MD 2, despite Jean-Charles Castelletto pulling a late goal back. At the time it reduced the deficit to 2-1 as Cameroon looked to fight back, but Sadio Mané put the game to bed deep into stoppage time.
Their opponents are in an even more desperate situation, with Gambia pointless after two games having lost to Senegal and Guinea. They will need to win here and hope results elsewhere see them go through as one of the four best third-place teams.
Gambia looked for a while like they might be able to take a point from their game with Guinea on MD 2, but ultimately fell to a goal from Aguibou Camara scored with just over 20 minutes remaining. Tom Saintfiet’s side were unable to record a shot on target.
This will be just the second AFCON meeting between Gambia and Cameroon after facing off in the quarter-finals two years ago. Cameroon won that clash 2-0 thanks to two goals from Karl Toko-Ekambi.
Gambia have lost all three of their previous matches against Cameroon in all competitions, failing to score a single goal and conceding five.
Pick 1: Cameroon to win
Pick 2: Both teams to score
Pick 3: Over 8.5 total corners