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It was a surprise to hear New York Red Bulls center-back Hassan Ndam had joined the Cameroon U-23 squad for its November series against Chad in Africa U-23 Cup of Nations qualifying. It will be a bigger surprise to hear Ndam plays at all in the first leg of that series today, since he doesn’t appear to have been with the team for very long.
Hassan Ndam à l’entraînement avec l’équipe nationale du Cameroun U23 aujourd’hui. pic.twitter.com/CdwJY26EmQ
— AllezLesLions (@AllezLesLions) November 15, 2018
Still, he’s trained with the squad, his fitness shouldn’t be an issue, and if he was summoned at short notice then it was presumably with the idea that he could be of immediate help to his team’s cause. While that help is more likely to be requested for the return leg of this home-and-away series - in Chad on November 20 - there is a chance Ndam sees the field today, for the first leg in Cameroon.
This series is the first of three qualifying rounds for the Africa U-23 Cup of Nations. If Cameroon beats Chad this month, it will have another home-and-away series to play against Sierra Leone in March. Win that series, and there will be another to be played in June against Uganda, South Sudan, or Tunisia. And if that is won, then the Indomitable Lions U-23s will be on their way to Egypt for Africa U-23 Cup of Nations and a shot at qualifying for the 2020 Summer Olympics men’s soccer tournament.
Aujourd'hui, les #LionsU23 reçoivent la sélection Tchadienne U23 dans le cadre des éliminatoires de la CAN de leur catégorie qui se jouera en Égypte en 2019. Le coup d'envoi de la partie est prévu à 15h30 au stade Ahmadou Ahidjo.#CMRTCH pic.twitter.com/cYwUiEvNtH
— Fecafoot-Officiel (@FecafootOfficie) November 16, 2018
This is not a game that is likely to be easily watched, but updates should be available online.