Chan 2022: Saidou Alioum Sets Out For Win Against Niger

Despite the advantage of the intermediate Lions in the group E standing, coach Alioum Saidou does not intend to leave any stones unturned against Niger on Tuesday, in the last group game of the TotalEnergies African Nations Championship.

On 3 points, Cameroon pits Niger who are on a point on Tuesday with the objective of not losing the match. One point will be enough for Cameroon to reach the quarter-finals.

However, coach Alioum Saidou, doesn’t go for the game expecting a draw. “We are not here for calculations. We will do our best to get a win and not just a draw,” he said at a press conference on Monday.

Alioum Saidou is determined to play for all 3 points: “We are preparing the match against Niger as a final. We have worked all week and we are ready for the match”.

Cameroon is in group E made up of just three teams. As a result, since their first match against Congo (1-0), the team had 8 days to prepare for their second outing.

The trainer thinks it is a disadvantage to his team: “It’s true that we had 8 days without a match. It has pros and cons. We took advantage of the period to motivate the players. We would have liked to have a friendly match to occupy the players but it was not possible”, regrets the gaffer.

Ngom Mbekeli’s second half header helped Cameroon to their first three points of the tournament against the Congo Republic.

This is Cameroon’s 5th participation at the TotalEnergies African Nations Championship and they have made the quarter-finals four times. The only time the intermediate Lions did not make it out of the group phase was in 2018.