Angola 1 vs 1 Cameroon: Marc Brys explains his choice of Olivier Ntcham

Marc Brys has opted for Olivier Ntcham in midfield after Christian Bassogog was injured after 19 minutes in the match against Angola on day 4 of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers. The substitution would have had a negative impact on the Indomitable Lions’ attacking play. Olivier Ntcham was then replaced by Faris Moumbagna late in the second half.

“It’s a shame that Bassogog had to leave the field, because he was very dangerous and dominant on his flank. I had to bring on Ntcham, even though his main position was 10 or 8, because Angola always had a huge amount of space behind their midfield. So I asked Ntcham to run into that space, capitalise on those opportunities and use his strong shooting ability. But he didn’t do that, he was too busy with the winger position. We tried to correct it at half-time but it still didn’t work. I don’t regret it, it was his first time but I thought it would be good to have a player who could shoot from distance,” said Marc Brys.