Thrilling Six-goal Thriller with Serbia
Cameroon, one of Africa’s representatives played an exciting 3-3 draw with Serbia to earn their first one point in Group G of the World Cup here in Doha on Monday afternoon. However, the draw cannot guarantee the Indomitable Lions progress to the knockout phase following their earlier defeat by Switzerland in their opening game last Thursday.
It was the Serbs that first gave sign of what to expect in the encounter when in barely 10 minutes, Aleksandar Mitrovic struck the post to rattle the Lions from Central Africa.
However, Cameroon opened the scoring when Jean-Charles Castelletto – just minutes earlier a key part of a defensive mix-up that handed Mitrovic a clear sight of goal – crept in at the far post to swipe in from a corner.
Indomitable Lions were wasteful with their first-half chances following the opener, providing a platform for a Serbian comeback.
In just a couple of minutes, Serbia had achieved just that. Both Strahinja Pavlovic and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic were on target in first-half stoppage time.
Mitrovic looked to have put the game beyond all doubt, tapping in from a sensational Serbian team move, but the Cameroonian players had other ideas.
The introduction of Vincent Aboubakar proved pivotal, with the emblematic striker scooping a chipped finish over goalkeeper Vanja Milinkovic-Savic giving the Lions hope.
Aboubakar again broke through just two minutes late, laying a goal on a plate for teammate Eric Maxime Choupo Moting. Either side could have won but, in the end, a draw seemed a fair ending to this epic battle that earned both teams their first one point apiece.
HOW THEY STAND
GROUP A
| Team | Pl | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
| 1 | Netherlands | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| 2 | Ecuador | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| 3 | Senegal | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
| 4 | Qatar | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 5 | -4 | 0 |
GROUP B
| Team | Pl | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
| 1 | England | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 4 |
| 2 | Iran | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 6 | -2 | 3 |
| 3 | USA | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 4 | Wales | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | -2 | 1 |
GROUP C
| Team | Pl | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
| 1 | Poland | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| 2 | Argentina | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| 3 | Saudi Arabia | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | -1 | 3 |
| 4 | Mexico | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | -2 | 1 |
GROUP D
| Team | Pl | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
| 1 | France | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| 2 | Australia | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | -2 | 3 |
| 3 | Denmark | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 1 |
| 4 | Tunisia | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 1 |
GROUP E
| Team | Pl | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
| 1 | Spain | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 8 | 1 | 7 | 4 |
| 2 | Japan | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| 3 | Costa Rica | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 7 | -6 | 3 |
| 4 | Germany | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | -1 | 1 |
GROUP F
| Team | Pl | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
| 1 | Croatia | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| 2 | Morocco | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| 3 | Belgium | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 3 |
| 4 | Canada | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 5 | -4 | 0 |
GROUP G
| Team | Pl | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
| 1 | Brazil | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 6 |
| 2 | Switzerland | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| 3 | Cameroon | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | -1 | 1 |
| 4 | Serbia | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 | -2 | 1 |
GROUP H
| Team | Pl | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
| 1 | Portugal | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 6 |
| 2 | Ghana | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 3 |
| 3 | Korea Republic | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | -1 | 1 |
4
| Uruguay | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | -2 | 1 |
