Cameroon coach Rigobert Song included goalkeeper Andre Onana but dropped striker Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting when he named their squad for next month’s African Cup of Nations finals on Thursday (December 28).
Onana, 27, had walked out on Cameroon after a row with Song at last year’s World Cup in Qatar but returned after a reconciliation with the coach to help Cameroon qualify for the Cup of Nations finals in the Ivory Coast, which gets underway on Jan. 13.
Choupo-Moting, who first debuted for the Indomitable Lions at the 2010 World Cup, paid a price for having missed Cameroon’s last three outings.
“Choupo-Moting is a very good player. But my staff and I want the continuity of recent times. He is an important player, but we had to make a choice in line with what we have been doing for some time now,” Song told a press conference as he named his 27-man squad.
Cameroon will be without Brentford striker Bryan Mbeumo, who underwent surgery on his right ankle earlier this month.
Song surprised with the selection of 17-year-old Wilfried Nathan Doualla, who plays in the Cameroon League and has never been previously called-up.
It will be a fifth Cup of Nations finals appearance for captain Vincent Aboubakar.
Cameroon play Guinea on January 15 in their opening Group C game before also meeting holders Senegal and Gambia.
