Vincent Aboubakar led Cameroon to a 2-1 victory in the opening match of the African Cup of Nation (AFCON) hosted by his country on Sunday evening.
The 30-year-old’s two well-taken penalties silenced Burkina Faso and ensured the Indomitable Lions begin their AFCON campaign with maximum points.
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In recognition of his latest heroics, we look closely at the former FC Porto striker.
YAOUNDE-BORN PLAYER
While Samuel Eto’o was at the peak of his powers, Aboubakar was already a favourite with locals in the West African nation. The Yaoundé-born player started out at Cotonsport FC based in the port city of Garoua where he continues to gather praise from coaches that trained him as a youngster and fans alike.
He was part of the first team squad between 2009 and 2010, and scored seven times in 15 appearances before his fledging talent was snapped up by French Ligue 1club Valenciennes.
ENDED CAMEROON’S 15-YEAR AFCON DROUGHT
Aboubakar was the hero as Cameroon won a fifth AFCON title in Gabon. Finding himself in a Cameroon squad dubbed the worst in recent memory, the striker then on loan at Besiktas was a substitute and scored the 88th minute winning goal that consigned favourites Egypt to unlikely defeat.
DROPPED FOR 2019 AFCON
With injuries piling up and lack of fitness, Aboubakar was dropped for the last AFCON edition in Egypt. Despite recovering from anterior cruciate ligament injury that sidelined him for months, the 6ft striker managed few games for Porto before the tournament. However, it was not enough to convince then-manager Clarence Seedorf to select Aboubakar, and Cameroon were knocked out by perennial rival, Nigeria, at the last-16 stage.
SOLE HOME-BASED PLAYER AT CAMEROON’S 2010 WORLD CUP
At 18 years old Aboubakar was on the plane to the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa with many of his idols. He achieved this feat at such young age while still playing his football in Cameroon. It was his breakout year at Cottonsport and Coach Paul Le Guen included him in the squad, the only home-based player on the Cameroon World Cup squad. Despite Cameroon not registering a single point, he registered two substitute appearances as the Indomitable Lions crashed out of the World Cup.
