By IANS,
New Delhi:Cameroon came out with intent by completely outclassing Nepal 5-0 in the Nehru Cup football tournament here Sunday.
Nepal looked totally out of their depth with the Africans running riot at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.
Midfielder Ebanga Bertin orchestrated a comprehensive win for “The Indomitable Lions”, scoring a bracein the 41st and the 66th minutes. Striker Kologny Vigny Merime too netted twice in the 13th and 61st minute before Momaso Joseph completed the scoreline in the 77th.
With the rain gods staying away, underfoot conditions were much better than the last time when Cameroon were held 2-2 by Syria.
But Sunday the turf was in good shape and this helped Cameroon’s passing game to flourish with most of the match being played inside the Nepal half.
Whenever the Cameroonians attacked, they did with great speed and fervour. Makon Thierry, Bertin and Kingue Mpondo bossed the midfield and combined superbly with each other. Their quick one touch passing and incisive through balls had the Nepalese in a knot.
Cameroon goalkeeper Ngome Lawrence didn’t had a touch with Nepal not having a single shot on target.
A small yet boisterous Nepali expats crowd left disappointed thanks to an uninspiring performance by their team.
Nepal looked flat on their feet and were completely out-muscled by a bigger and stronger opponent. Cameroon made a frenetic start, camping in front of the Nepal goal.
Merime scored the opener thanks to a mistake by Nepal goalkeeper Riteesh Thapa, who palmed Makon Thierry’s cross from the right straight into the path of the striker.
Bertin netted in the second before the break. Thapa’s weak goal-kick fell to Makon, who played a through-ball to Ashu Tambe on the right. Tambe coolly play squared the ball to Bertin who finished the move.
Merime scored his second of the night with another tap in while Thapa spilled Bertin’s scuffed shot. Bikesh Kuthu came on for a injured Thapa and the goalkeeper’s first job was to pick the ball from the back of his own net.
The win takes Cameroon to second spot in the table, two points behind India, who have six. Nepal are yet to open their account and are virtually out of the tournament.