Embolo goal lifts Switzerland to victory over Cameroon
South Korea hold fancied Uruguay to 0-0 draw
Breel Embolo’s goal lifted Switzerland to a 1-0 win over Cameroon at the World Cup on Thursday and he kept his promise not to celebrate scoring against the country where he was born.
The Swiss forward from Yaounde struck with a right foot shot in the 48th minute, standing all alone 8 meters (yards) out in the middle of the goalmouth to take Xherdan Shaqiri’s low pass.
Embolo then pursed his lips in a wry smile and held his arms out wide, before raising his hands in a gesture of apology as teammates rushed to him near the penalty spot.
He pointed toward Swiss fans behind the goal where he had scored then to Cameroon fans at the opposite corner of Al Janoub stadium.
The 25-year-old forward left Cameroon with his family when he was five. They spent time in France before settling in Switzerland, the country he is now representing at a second World Cup.
Though an African-born player scored, teams from Africa are now scoreless through the four games they have played at this World Cup. All have played higher-ranked teams, and Morocco and Tunisia earned 0-0 draws, respectively against Croatia and Denmark.
Another surprising result
In Al Rayyan, another favored team has failed to impress in the early stages of the World Cup.
This time it was South Korea holding South American power Uruguay to a 0-0 draw on Thursday, a result that probably favors the Asian team.
The draw at Education City Stadium was yet another early World Cup match with a surprising result. Argentina and Germany both lost their opening matches in major upsets.
South Korea, with forward Son Heung-min wearing a mask to protect a broken left eye socket, always looked the more likely to score against the more experienced Uruguayans. The South Koreans were quicker, pressing from the opening whistle.
Some South Korean fans wore
Batman-like masks in solidarity with Son.
However, in a match with few clear scoring chances, Uruguay had the best chances: Diego Godin hit the post with a header in the 43rd minute and Federico Valverde hit it in the 89th.
Uruguay will next face Portugal in Group H while South Korea plays Ghana.
South Korea attacked from the start and Son excited the crowd every time he touched the ball. He managed only one threatening attack in the first half, however, and did less in the second.
South Korea always looked quicker than Uruguay, but not necessarily the more dangerous. The team’s best chance came in the 34th minute when Hwang Ui-jo sailed a close-range attempt over the crossbar.
Cameroon’s streak of losses at World Cup finals tournaments extended to eight games dating back to 2002.
In the move for Embolo to score, it was too easy for the Swiss to pass the ball quickly through the Cameroon defensive lines from left flank to right.
The fast Swiss start to the second half contrasted with a lack of firsthalf urgency that could hardly be explained by the 1 p.m. kickoff — one of only seven games in Qatar being played entirely in daylight. The heat peaked at 29 Celsius (84 Fahrenheit), humidity was low and most of the playing area was shaded.
Cameroon wasted a clear scoring chance to take control in the 10th minute. A long, straight pass past Switzerland’s central defenders led to Karl Toko Ekambi firing a halfvolley shot high over the bar from just 10 meters (yards).
Cameroon exerted little pressure trying to level the game. AndreFrank Zambo Anguissa’s header in the 66th was aimed directly at goalkeeper Yann Sommer who saved easily.
In the next play, a Swiss move down the right flank almost repeated the goal but goalkeeper Andre Onana saved from Ruben Vargas.
Milla time
Cameroon great Roger Milla was paraded on the field before the game. Fans were shown a video montage of his goals at the 1990 World Cup where Cameroon became the first African team ever to advance to the quarterfinals. Milla was joined by Samuel Eto’o, Cameroon’s greatest player who now heads its soccer federation. Eto’o scored the only goal when Cameroon last won at the World Cup — 1-0 against Saudi Arabia in 2002.
Referee Facundo Tello had a quieter day than when he sent off 10 players in Argentina just before coming to Qatar. He showed red cards to seven Boca Juniors players and three from Racing Club after an extra-time brawl. Here, Tello showed three yellow cards and no red cards. This was the 13th game at the World Cup and no player has yet been sent off.
As the half wore on, Uruguay began to take more possession but always seemed more cautious, taking less initiative despite having the more experienced players.
Son went down in a heap early in the second half with Martin Caceres getting the first yellow card of the match.
Uruguay coach Diego Alonso sent in Edinson Cavani for Luis Suarez in 64th minute as the pace of the match slowed until Valverde hit the post in the final minutes.