From Oliver Holt in Sydney
A penalty shoot-out, so often a desultory dessert at the end of a sumptuous meal, illuminated the men’s football Olympic final yesterday afternoon. The Spain players did not shame themselves in the postscript to their 2-2 draw with Cameroon but the Indomitable Lions displayed such poise, such confidence in their own technical ability, that they turned the competition from the spot into a confirmation of African football’s quickening march.
Cameroon did not miss one of their five kicks. They sent the Spain goalkeeper, Aranzubia, the wrong way each time. Even if he had guessed right, he would not have got near three of them. Those were hit high and powerfully towards the roof of the net. One, after a languid apology of a run-up from Samuel Eto’o Fils, the game’s outstanding player, was a chip that kissed the underside of the crossbar on its way in.
After Spain missed once - Amaya’s drive bounced off the top of the bar - the contest was over. Pierre Wome completed the formalities. Even if football has not managed to figure highly on the Richter Scale of achievements that these Olympics have produced, Wome’s celebration, running round the net, leaping the advertising boards, dancing a wiggled-hip jig and hurling his shirt into the crowd, was undoubtedly one of the best of the Games.
Pierre Wome scores the winning penalty in the shoot-out. Picture: Lionel Cironneau/AP
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The significance of the result went far beyond that, though. The shoot-out victory was important because it banished yet another stereotype about African football, namely that its protagonists crack under pressure. When the heat was on yesterday, the men of Cameroon held their nerve and took refuge in technique that had taken the breath away during the match. It was the Europeans that found the going too tough.
There has, quite rightly, been continuing scepticism about what can be read into the results of the Olympic football competition. Restrictions on the age of players are imposed on the European nations whose four representatives here were chosen by dint of their peformances in the European under-21 tournament. Even Cameroon were missing many of their best players, including Rigobert Song, asked to stay at home by his Liverpool manager, Gérard Houllier, and Joseph-Desiré Job, concentrating on his fledgling career at Middlesbrough.
Despite those reservations, though, football trends emerge at the Olympics. When Nigeria beat Brazil and Argentina on their way to the gold medal in Atlanta four years ago, their victory was the forerunner of a flood of African players gracing European club football. Cameroon’s victory yesterday, in front of more than 90,000 people in the Olympic Stadium, was proof that their players have benefited from that club experience and are growing ever stronger.
Eight of their starting line-up earn their wages at European clubs.
Some, including Lauren, of Arsenal, Patrick Mboma, of Parma, and Geremi, of Real Madrid, play at the very highest level. The charge of naivety that could once be levelled at African players started to lose its credibility some years ago and is now utterly moribund. The players of top African nations, such as Cameroon, Nigeria and Morocco, have added tactical nous to their outstanding athleticism and natural ability.
Cameroon went behind after two minutes when Xavi curled a free kick over a defensive wall and into the corner of the net. Spain should have extended their lead three minutes later after Jose Mari was brought down in the area but Idriss Carlos Kameni, Cameroon’s 16-year-old goalkeeper, dived low to his right to smother Angulo’s weak kick. Despite that reprieve, the game seemed to be over when Gabri sprung a poorly executed offside trap on the stroke of half-time and guided his shot past Kameni to put Spain two goals ahead.
Cameroon kept their composure. They are, after all, the nation that warned the world African football was about to emerge as a real threat to the established order when, inspired by Roger Milla, they reached the quarter-finals of the World Cup in 1990. A decade on, they are Africa’s dominant nation having beaten Nigeria in the final of the African Nations Cup in Lagos last February. With two years to go to the next World Cup, they have the ability to take the next step forward and become the first African nation to reach the semi-finals of the sport’s biggest tournament.
They had looked the better side for most of the first half without creating any chances but after they had clawed their way fortuitously back into the match early in the second half when Mboma’s cross hit Amaya in the face and wrong-footed the Spanish goalkeeper, Cameroon overwhelmed Spain with their attacking verve and their exhilarating skill. The ability of their players to kill high balls with their instep again and again was breathtaking.
Their equalising goal was a masterpiece of creativity and movement.
Serge Mimpo carried the ball out of defence and threaded a pass down the line to Mboma. His cross behind the defence found Eto’o Fils in space and even though his first touch was not perfect, he rectified it with his second, a low left foot shot that sped past Aranzubia.
Eto’o Fils should have won the game 20 minutes from the end of normal time but his volley from Lauren’s brilliant pull back went wide when the goal was gaping.
Spain had two men sent off, rather harshly, in the last 20 minutes of normal time, but that should not be allowed to obscure the fact that Cameroon had already proved their superiority by then. If Nigeria’s win in Atlanta was a welcome surprise, Cameroon’s first Olympic gold in any sport was just a promise of more footballing glories to come.
SPAIN (4-1-3-2): Aranzubia (Athletic Bilbao) - Lacruz (Athletic Bilbao), Marchena (Benfica), Amaya (Atlético Madrid), Puyol (Barcelona) - Albelda (Valencia) - T Velamazan (Espanol; sub: Gabri, Barcelona, 27min), Xavi (Barcelona), Angulo (Valencia; sub: Capdevila, Deportivo La Coruna, 74) - Jose Mari (AC Milan), Tamudo (Espanol; sub: Ferron, Real Zaragoza, 49).
CAMEROON (3-5-2): I C Kameni (Le Havre) - P Abanda (Espoir), A Nguimbat (Canon Yaounde; sub: D Ngom Kome, Levante, 46), S Mimpo (Panahaiki) - Geremi (Real Madrid), N Alnoudji (Tonnerre Yaounde; sub: A Meyong Ze, Vitoria Setubal, 111), P Wome (Bologna), Lauren (Arsenal), S Branco (Eintracht Braunschweig; sub: J Epalle, Panahaiki, 91) - S Eto’o Fils (Real Mallorca), P Mboma (Parma).
Referee: F Ramos Rizo (Mexico).
