Why is André Onana not playing in Cameroon’s crucial AFCON clash with The Gambia?

Cameroon shot-stopper André Onana has been left out of his country’s Africa Cup of Nations group-stage fixture against The Gambia on Tuesday.

The Manchester United goalkeeper did not feature in Cameroon’s opening game of the tournament against Guinea after arriving late, having played for the Old Trafford side against Tottenham in the Premier League just one day before.

There was, however, a place in the starting eleven for Onana in Cameroon’s second match, which ended in a 3-1 loss to Senegal on January 19. Onana was criticized for his goalkeeping display against Senegal, which may explain why he is back on the bench at AFCON. The former Inter keeper has the worst save success rate (0%) at the Africa Cup of Nations.

Fellow netminder Fabrice Ondoa started between the sticks in place of Onana in the 1-1 draw against Guinea and has taken his place in goal for today’s clash against The Gambia.

Problems with Song

During the 2022 World Cup, Cameroon head coach Rigobert Song left Onana out of the country’s squad for the draw with Serbia because of “disciplinary reasons”.

Onana then made the decision to retire from international soccer following a disagreement with Cameroon legend Samuel Eto’o, the president of the Cameroon Football Federation (Fecafoot), but subsequently made a return to the Cameroon camp.

How Cameroon can advance to the AFCON round of 16

Cameroon are third in their group and must win against The Gambia if they’re to progress beyond the AFCON group stages. They also require Senegal to get past Guinea in second place, to have a chance of automatically qualifying for the round of 16.

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