IN CAMEROON'S WIN, SWITZERLAND'S ATTACK DESERVED MORE THAN ONE GOAL

IN CAMEROON'S WIN, SWITZERLAND'S ATTACK DESERVED MORE THAN ONE GOAL

By Rashmi Goel

The Swiss team looked bright in their 1-0 victory over Cameroon. The likes of Xherdan Shaqiri and Breel Embolo provided Swiss fans with plenty of cause for celebration. It was Switzerland that took the early lead, while Cameroon sat in a mid-block and tried to create openings on the counterattack. Xherdan Shaqiri's searching ball toward the hyperactive Breel Embolo posed some early threats. With a strong tackle on Silvan Widmer, Noho Tolo was called into action, while Granit Xhaka missed a speculative shot.

The pace and constant movement of Embolo created numerous gaps in the Cameroon defense. The Swiss forward was bundled over by Shaqiri's, particularly measured pass, but any claims for a penalty were snuffed out when he was found marginally offside. It should be noted that Cameroon was able to get a grip on the task, with Eric Choupo-Moting and Bryan Mbeumo causing havoc on the flanks. Despite being able to outrun Manuel Akanji on the left channel, the former's shot was blocked by Yan Sommer as the Manchester City defender caught up to him. During halftime, Akanji nearly had an impact at the other end. After getting up well from a corner, he headed just wide of the goal.

Immediately the following halftime, the Swiss scored their first goal. In the second half, Shaqiri teamed up with Embolo, with the wide man pulling back for the striker to sidefoot into the goal. As a native of Cameroon, Embolo's celebration was muted, however, his teammates reacted with rapturous joy. It was the goal of Choupo-Moting to restore the balance to the game. Through an impressive display of skill on the right flank, he was able to penetrate deep into the Switzerland box. Despite Sommer's near post save, his weaving run deserves more credit. Andre Onana performed goalkeeping heroics at the other end, saving Ruben Vargas with a great reaction save.

It was a good performance by Cameroon in their opening match. A 43rd-ranked team in the world would not have expected much from the 15th. However, they were organized, tactically aware, and challenged their more illustrious opponents. However, Switzerland's greater attacking fluency was too much for them, even if they only managed to score one goal.