International
2010-05-25 - Georgia vs Cameroon
A Sports Betting Pick by ROzsolt
FIFA : World-Cup : International Warm-up
Venue : Dolomitenstadion, Linz, Austria
Tuesday, 25th May 2010 Kickoff 17:00 GMT
Cameroon will meet Georgia in Linz, Austria, as part of its preparation for the 2010 FIFA World Cup scheduled to start 11 June in South Africa.
The Indomitable Lions have 3 other friendly games scheduled before the Word Cup kickoff, all against European teams, Slovakia, Portugal and Serbia.
Cameroon will open its World Cup campaign against Japan 14 June before meeting Denmark and the Netherlands.
Georgia (FIFA rank : 119)
Since the independence from the Soviet Union was declared finalized in 1991, Georgia national football team never managed to qualify for a major final-stage tournament.
Despite the efforts of the Georgian Football Federation of hiring important coaches like Klaus Topmoller and Hector Cuper their performances in the Euro 2008 and Word Cup 2010 qualifiers were disappointing.
Georgia finished their Euro 2008 qualifying group 6th (out of 7 teams) and they were bottom placed in the World Cup 2010 qualifiers, only collecting 3 points.
Georgia's most memorable victory from the last years was succeeded in a game against Scotland in 2007, which they won in front of 36 500 fans from Tbilisi thanks to the goals of Mchedlidze and Siradze.
Star player of the team is Kakha Kaladze, the 32 years old central defender from AC Milan, who is also the captain.
Cameroon (FIFA rank : 19)
Absent from Germany 2006, the only one of the last six world finals they have missed, the Indomitable Lions will be making their reappearance in Group E, where they will face the Netherlands, Denmark and Japan.
Cameroon coach Paul Le Guen made an interesting choice by picking Georgia for a friendly match, they do not fit the profile of any of their group stage opponents, but they probably wanted for this first game a less demanding opponent, and a victory will help their morale before the upcoming games.
Cameroon's last two build-up games however are against very powerful teams like Portugal and Serbia, so those will be the real tests for them before the Word Cup kickoff.
Their showing at the Africa Cup of Nations Angola 2010 was disappointing, due to the elimination in the quarter finals against Egypt after extra-time, 3-1. It’s the 3rd time in their last 4 presence at CAN when they were eliminated in the quarter finals. The last time Cameroon lift the trophy was in 2000 and 2002.
Back on March 3rd in Monaco, the “lions” played a friendly game against World Champions, Italy, a game that ended up in a goalless draw. Cameroon had a good possession but never really tested Italy’s goalkeeper, Marchetti, on the other hand Italy had 12 shots (5 on goal) and they scored a goal, but Chiellini’s strike was ruled out for offside.
Cameroon played in a 4-3-3 system with Dorge Kouemaha central forward, helped on the wings by Eto’o and Emana.
Third time winner of the Uefa Champions League, Cameroon’s star player Samuel Eto’o is not expected to show up against Georgia.
Analysis :
Despite Cameroon being outshined in the last years by other African national teams like Ghana, Egypt or Ivory Coast, they still remain a symbol of African football, the first team ever to reach a Word Cup quarter final (1990).
Realistically talking they will have to fight with Japan and Denmark for the second position because the Netherlands are the big favorites, and the Dutch are probably the best team in the world that hasn't yet lifted the trophy.
Georgia’s latest performances are not worrying, they won a friendly game against Estonia in March this year but prior to that they lost 5 games conceding 15 goals.
Squad lists :
Georgia squad :
Goalkeepers:
Giorgia Bediashvili, Giorgi Lomaia, Zurab Mamaladze
Defenders:
Kakha Kaladze, Guram Kashia, Zurab Khizanishvili, Ucha Lobzhanidze, George Popkhadze, Amiran Sanaia
Midfielders:
Davit Devdariani, Levan Kenia, Levan Khmaladze, Levan Kobiashvili,v Alexandre Kvakhadadze, Jaba Lipartia, Giorge Merebashvilli, David Odikadze, Luka Razamadze, Levan Tskitishvili
Forwards:
Vladimer Dvalishvili, Nikoloz Gelashvili, Alexander Iashvili, Levan McHedlidze, David Siradze
Cameroon squad :
Goalkeepers :
Souleymanou Hamidou, Carlos Kameni, Guy Ndy, Patrick Tignyemb
Defenders :
Jean-Patrick Abouna, Benoit Assou-Ekotto, Sebastien Bassong, Gaetan Bong, Makadji Boukar, Geremi, Joel Matip, Stéphane Mbia, Nicolas Nkoulou, Rigobert Song
Midfielders :
Aurélien Chedjou, Achille Emana, Eyong Enoh, Jean Makoun, Georges Mandjeck, Patrick Mevoungou, Landry N`Guemo, Marcel Ndjeng, Alexandre Song Billong
Forwards :
Vincent Aboubakar, Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting, Samuel Eto'o, Mohamadou Idrissou, Dorge Kouemaha , Pierre Webó
The Betting Verdict :
Cameroon’s defense was quite shaky during the CAN, they conceded 8 goals in 4 games but then showed an improvement when they managed to held Italy in March.
Gerogia is practically non-existent on the European and world map of football, the defeats against Iceland, Malta and Moldova in 2009 confirms that.
Cameroon has both experimented and young, promising players that play in top European leagues, so the difference in quality between the two sides is more than visible.
The Word Cup is just 3 weeks away so Paul Le Guen will be searching to put together a competitive 11.
The Pick :
Georgia 0-1 Cameroon
