Africa Cup of Nations

Cameroon boss takes dig at Joel Matip after Africa Cup of Nations success

By Daniel Lewis, Senior Reporter | 06 February 2017

Hugo Broos believes that the eight players who decided against representing Cameroon in the Africa Cup of Nations will live to regret their decision.

Cameroon manager Hugo Broos has taken a swipe at Liverpool defender Joel Matip after he missed out on the chance to lead his nation to Africa Cup of Nations glory.

The Indomitable Lions defied the odds by going all the way in Gabon, culminating in victory over Egypt in Sunday's final to win the competition for a fifth time.

Cameroon were without the services of eight players for the tournament, with Matip the highest-profile absentee after claiming that he has retired from international football, which would also rule him out of several Liverpool games.

Speaking to reporters after seeing his side lift the famous trophy, Broos said: "There was a lot of trouble before, players who wouldn't come with us. OK, it's their decision. But maybe they are saying now to themselves, 'S***! Why didn't I go with them?'.

"We came here and I think nobody thought we would go so far. We tried to get through the first round. We did it. So we said, 'OK, let's see what happens against Senegal'. We won the game again. Then you get a boost of confidence and from that time we believed that if we got a bit lucky we could win the final."

Cameroon previously won the competition in 1984, 1988, 2000 and 2002, while also finishing as runners-up nine years ago.