TotalEnergies U17 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) holders Cameroon kick off their title defence mission on Thursday when they take on Mali in Annaba, and head coach Serge Mimpo says they have their batteries charged for a positive start.
Speaking in Wednesday's pre-match press conference, Mimpo says the players are focused and ready for the task against a tough Malian side.
"I don't think I am under pressure. We are calmly preparing for this match while respecting Mali," the coach said.
Group C has been made a bit more complex with the elimination of South Sudan, meaning the contest will only be among three teams. Coach Mimpo, a gold medalist with the Cameroon team at the Olympic Games in 2000 says this has changed his team's plans
"The situation will change a little. With four teams, it is different. We have however prepared calmly without thinking much about the change. We have to keep within our targets, which is to win all our games," the coach further stated.
Skipper Sony Evina also said the switch in structure of the group will be a little bit disruptive, but they are ready to accommodate the change and keep within their targets.
"We really wanted to play this first match, but afterwards we moved on and we are preparing calmly. Everything is going well. We try to talk together about the shortcomings that need to be corrected before we face Mali."
He adds; "We are not afraid of anything. We saw the strengths and weaknesses of Mali during their first match and we prepared accordingly."
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Mali started off their campaign with a 1-0 win over Burkina Faso and having watched the game, the Cameroonian coach believes they are in for a tough duel against the West Africans.
"We have seen how Mali plays. They have certain strengths, especially on the right wing and in midfield. But, we have prepared accordingly and we have a plan that will help us win," noted the coach.
Mimpo also reaffirmed his team's ambition to retain their crown. "We are here to keep our trophy. That's really what we are here for," he said.
Skipper Evina explains as much. "We remain focused on our objective which is to win the trophy. We're not going to call it pressure, but our big brothers in 2019 did a good job and we want to follow in their footsteps."
The match is penned for the Annaba Stadium at 17h00 local time. A win for Cameroon will sail them off nicely towards a last eight place while Mali will confirm their place in the quarter finals with a point in the least.
