‘The indomitable lions’ have been synonymous with flair and style ever since they captured the attention of the world with their brilliant performances in the 1990 World Cup. However, they have never come close to emulating the achievements of that few weeks in Italy since, failing to qualify for the second round on every other occasion they have been involved in the competition.
Their first World Cup was in 1982 when they held eventual winners Italy to a 1-1 draw but further draws with Poland and Peru saw them eliminated. It is their exploits in 1990 which they are famous for however. They pulled off one of the all time great World Cup upsets by defeating defending champions Argentina 1-0 in the opening match. They also beat Romania 2-1 but were hammered 4-0 by the Soviet Union. They still made the knockout stages, defeating Colombia 2-1 after extra time thanks to two Roger Milla goals. Their dream ended in the quarter finals, but only after giving England a massive shock. They led 2-1 with seven minutes left before Gary Lineker equalised. He then scored an extra time winner to send Cameroon home. Their 1994 tournament was marked by a 3-0 loss to Brazil and a 6-1 humbling at the hands of Russia. Their 1998 and 2002 adventures were also cut short by first round exits.
Qualification for this World Cup was an easy affair for the Cameroon side. They easily won their first group, dropping only two points along the way. Their second group stage was not much harder, though they did lose 1-0 away to Togo. They won the group by four points and coasted to South Africa.
They have a number of talented individuals who could light up the tournament. The most obvious star is Samuel Eto’o who has scored an astonishing 43 international goals and has been one of the finest strikers in the European leagues for several years. Other notable players include Geremi who was formerly Chelsea’s midfield general and Alexandre Song who is a star for Arsenal. They have been drawn in Group E alongside Holland, Japan and Denmark. This group is very hard to call, with Holland as favorites but in truth, any two of the four sides can qualify though Japan and Cameroon expected to bow out. However, with such a talented squad, Cameroon could conceivably pull off a surprise or two and be dangerous foes in South Africa.