South Africa v Cameroon: Line-ups, stats and preview

South Africa take on Cameroon in the Round of 16 at the Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco.

Two of the biggest names in African football meet for a place in the quarter-finals in what is their first meeting in any competition for nearly a decade.

Bafana Bafana, AFCON champions in 1996 and third-place finishers last time around, progressed to the knockout stages as runners-up in Group B, edging past Angola 2-1 in their opener before a 1-0 defeat by 10-man Egypt was followed by a dramatic 3-2 win over neighbouring Zimbabwe.

Hugo Broos, the South Africa coach who led Cameroon to their last AFCON triumph in Gabon in 2017, is acutely aware of what his team will be up against.

“We must learn to have concentration,” Broos said following the victory over Zimbabwe.

“We can’t play like that against them [Cameroon]. If we do that, we have no chance to win.”

Only Egypt have more AFCON titles to their name than Cameroon. The five-time champions finished second behind holders Ivory Coast in Group F courtesy of having scored just one goal fewer, with their points tallies and goal difference identical.

Cameroon, who will be hoping to go far to go someway to alleviate the pain of failing to qualify for the 2026 World Cup, opened their campaign with a 1-0 over Gabon before drawing 1-1 with Ivory Coast and fighting back to defeat surprise package Mozambique 2-1.

But head coach David Pagou insisted the occasion “will be a very complicated match.”

Broos confirmed that Sphephelo Sithole’s omission against Zimbabwe was a tactical decision rather than anything injury-related.

Sipho Mbule returned in that game as Broos opted for a more attacking lineup led by Burnley’s Lyle Foster.

Bryan Mbeumo is yet to find the net at this year’s tournament but the Manchester United forward will still be key to Cameroon’s success.

Both he and Brighton midfielder Carlos Baleba were withdrawn at half-time against Mozambique but this is thought to have been to avoid suspension for the knockout phase.

Defender and captain Nouhou Tolo remains a concern after being forced off with a hamstring injury and replaced by Christopher Wooh.