February 5, 2022

Antonio Conceiçao, Coach of Cameroon, says he wanted to make history with his team but it did not go as planned.

“We wanted to write history, but it didn’t work out,” he said.

He said his team must learn from their mistakes and move forward ahead of their 2021 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) third place match against Burkina Faso.

Cameroon was knocked out of the 2021 AFCON tournament after losing 1-3 to Egypt in a penalty shootout following a goalless draw after extra time in the semifinals on Thursday in Yaounde.

Conceiçao, speaking at a pre-match news conference, said although the team was disappointed with their elimination in the semi-finals, they must now learn from their mistakes and end their campaign in the competition on a positive note.

“The sadness is great especially when we do not achieve our objectives.

“The players have worked well and I am proud of them. It is up to us to learn now and move forward.

“I gave the best of myself to have the best results with this team.

“We wanted to write history, but it didn’t work out,” he said.

Indomitable Lions goalkeeper, André Onana, also stressed the need for the team to forget about their disappointment and regroup to ensure victory against Burkina Faso in the third place match.

“It’s difficult to live in such a situation but that’s football. It’s true that the disappointment is great, but that’s life. We have to regroup to win this third place match this Saturday against Burkina Faso.

“We have to try to forget the elimination in the semi-finals and think about the future, especially this classification match and the World Cup qualifiers.

“We have confidence in ourselves and we must recover quickly. We ask our supporters and all Cameroonians to stay around our young team,” Onana said.

Decimated after their elimination on their own ground, the Cameroon team still can’t get out of this defeat.

Barely 48 hours after their penalties’ heartbreak, the Indomitable Lions will have to regroup and give their faithful supporters something to cheer when they face the Stallions of Burkina Faso at Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium, Yaoundé, on Saturday. (NAN)