MY ACCOUNT
– Serbia had scored at least two goals in four successive games ahead of the World Cup
– Both teams have scored in two of Cameroon’s last three games
– Recommended bet: Serbia to win and both teams to score
Cameroon and Serbia are looking to pick up their first points of the 2022 World Cup when they square off in Group G on Monday.
The Indomitable Lions fell to a 1-0 defeat against Switzerland in their opener with Cameroon-born Breel Embolo scoring the only goal of the game for the European outfit.
Serbia, meanwhile, had a very tough start as they took on pre-tournament favourites Brazil and, despite a strong defensive showing in the first half, they caved under the pressure in the second period as a Richarlison brace earned the Selecao a 2-0 victory.
Those results leave Cameroon sitting third and Serbia fourth, both without any points, and knowing they need to get a win from this clash to be in the running for a spot in the last 16.
Team news
After failing to score in their opening game, Cameroon boss Rigobert Song has a big decision to make concerning who will lead the line.
Bayern Munich forward Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting was given the nod against Switzerland but Vincent Aboubakar, who won the Golden boot at the 2021 Africa Cup of Nations, could be preferred.
Midfielder Olivier Ntcham is unavailable for the rest of Cameroon’s group games so Andre-Frank Zambo Anguissa and Martin Hongla will continue in the engine room.
Juventus forward Filip Kostic was not fit enough to feature against Brazil and he remains a doubt but Dusan Vlahovic is expected to come in to partner Aleksandar Mitrovic in attack.
There are no other injury concerns for boss Dragan Stojkovic.
The stats
Cameroon have failed to get out of the group in each of their last five appearances at a World Cup and have only reached the knockout phase once, making it to the quarter-finals in 1990, in seven previous attempts.
The Indomitable Lions have picked up just one win in their last 15 World Cup fixtures, beating Saudi Arabia 1-0 in 2002 when Samuel Eto’o scored.
They have failed to win in five games, including the loss to Switzerland, with three of those fixtures ending in defeat.
Serbia breezed through qualifying for the World Cup, finishing ahead of Portugal to top the standings, thanks largely to Mitrovic’s eight goals.
Like Cameroon, Serbia have struggled to get out of the group in recent World Cup campaigns, having failed to reach the knockout stages in their last three involvements.
The Eagles have won four and lost two when facing African nations, including a victory over Cameroon in their only previous encounter in 2010.
Prediction
Cameroon struggled to create much against Switzerland but they will need to find a way to get bodies into the final third as they look to get some points on the board.
Serbia are likely to approach this game with a completely different mindset to the one they employed when trying to stifle Brazil in the opener.
Stojkovic should allow his side to have more freedom to express themselves and, as was seen during qualifying, Serbia certainly are not short of talent in the final third.
Mitrovic is the obvious candidate to score but Vlahovic and Dusan Tadic are also more than capable of registering to help Serbia on to victory.
Keeping the back door shut was a bit of an issue for Serbia in qualifying, conceding nine times in eight games, and they have only kept two clean sheets in their last nine games.
That should offer some hope to Cameroon and there looks to be value in backing Serbia to win and both teams to score at 12/5 via LiveScore Bet.
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