U-17 AFCON: Cameroon coach confident despite loss to Ivory Coast

Cameroon U-17 national team head coach Saidou Alioum has called for calm after the team’s loss to Ivory Coast in their U-17 AFCON opener in Morocco.

U-17 AFCON: Ivory Coast 2-0 Cameroon Highlights

🎥 HIGHLIGHTS: 🇨🇮 2-0 🇨🇲

A confident display sees Côte d’Ivoire claim the victory over Cameroon in Matchday 1. 👏#TotalEnergiesAFCONU17 pic.twitter.com/SIdNjdK9lM

— CAF Online (@CAF_Online) May 13, 2026

The Lions U-17 suffered a 0-2 defeat to the Les Éléphanteaux during the Group B opener courtesy of second-half goals from Ange Nomane and Hubert Yao. Despite the loss, Alioum remains optimistic ahead of the remains games against Uganda and DR Congo.

“We just played against a very strong Côte d’Ivoire team. We burned a joker (exhausted our margin for error). The boys gave it their all, especially in the first half, where we had plenty of chances to take the lead.”

“Unfortunately, we just couldn’t find that one goal. In the second half, we conceded a goal early on, which demoralized the team a bit. But the players reacted well and fought back into the game. In the end, we couldn’t equalize. As I said earlier, we just burned a joker.”

“In a four-team competition, it’s crucial to avoid losing your first match. We lost, and Uganda won their second match. For us, the next match will be like a final if we want to stay alive in this tournament. With Côte d’Ivoire and Uganda already on three points, and us and the DRC on zero, this match against Uganda is make-or-break. We had a training session today, and I asked the players to stay focused.”

Cameroon will face Uganda in the second fixture on May 16 before concluding the Group games against DR Congo three days later.

Uganda on the other hand announced their presence with an emphatic 3-0 opening victory over DR Congo.

The top ten teams from the tournament in Morocco will qualify automatically to represent Africa at the U-17 World Cup in Qatar.