AFCON hope for Andre Onana?! Marc Brys refuses to accept Cameroon sacking as he names new squad including overlooked Man Utd goalkeeper & blasts 'narcissistic' FA president Samuel Eto'o

Brys remains under contract with the Ministry of Sport until September 2026 and is yet to receive an official termination notice. As such, the Belgian manager is refusing to accept his dismissal from the hands of former Inter and Barcelona striker Eto'o, with the pair feuding intensely over the past year or so. David Pagou is expected to be named as Brys' official successor, having been cited as Cameroon's manager on FIFA's website. However, the situation is a messy one, and Brys seemingly has no desire to leave, instead naming the squad he intends to take with him to Morocco for the upcoming AFCON tournament.

Speaking to TV5 Monde on Tuesday, Brys doubled down on his position in charge of the national team and continued his feud with Eto'o, saying: "As long as there is no signed note from the Presidency of the Republic appointing David Pagou as the coach of the Indomitable Lions, in the eyes of the State of Cameroon, Mr. Marc Brys remains. This is not up for discussion, and it has been this way in Cameroon for at least 30 years.

He added to Afrik-Foot: “How can we go and compete in such a tournament without a world-class goalkeeper, or without [Vincent] Aboubakar? Because these are players who have character, who stand up to the president. It’s incredible, but it doesn’t surprise me coming from someone who is narcissistic, who thinks he’s the most handsome.” 

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It's been a tough few years for Onana. After signing from Inter Milan in 2023, the 29-year-old made a catalogue of errors across two seasons with Manchester United and was eventually dropped as their starting goalkeeper by Ruben Amorim. Back-up stopper Altay Bayindir was initially handed the gloves, but summer signing Senne Lammens has since been deployed between the sticks and has started his career at Old Trafford in calm fashion.

Onana, who is now on loan at Trabzonspor in a squad that features household names such as Stefan Savic and Paul Onuachu, was not included in Pagou's final AFCON squad either. However, he could benefit if Brys remains in charge, having been named on the manager's alternative list. The goalkeeper has previously had issues while playing for his national team, most notably being sent home from the 2022 World Cup by then-manager Rigobert Song due to disciplinary problems. He played just three times in 2023 but has featured more regularly over the past two years.  

Also among the players named on Brys' list are United star Bryan Mbeumo, Brighton & Hove Albion midfielder Carlos Baleba, former Bayern Munich and Stoke striker Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting and Aboubakar, who is behind only Eto'o in the list of Cameroon's greatest ever goalscorers.

Cameroon's predicament is clearly a tricky one with a lot of strange things happening all at once. It's hardly ideal with their first game at AFCON coming in two weeks on Christmas Eve, with their campaign starting against Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang's Gabon. They also face the Ivory Coast and Mozambique in the group stage, but they are not considered to be among the favourites to lift the cup come the end of the tournament.

Instead, hosts Morocco are one of the heavily fancied teams. They have home advantage and also boast talented players with the likes of Achraf Hakimi, Yassine Bounou, Sofyan Amrabat and Noussair Mazraoui among those at manager Walid Regragui's disposal. Senegal, Algeria, Egypt and the Ivory Coast will all hope for strong showings, while DR Congo beat both Cameroon and Nigeria on their way to booking a place in the inter-confederation playoffs for the 2026 World Cup.