By Oni Ladonette Ondesa<\/b><\/p>\n
Journalist, Kick442.com – Cameroun<\/strong><\/p>\n The Coelacanths may have dropped their AFCON 2025 opener, but goalkeeper Yannick Pandor won the night.<\/p>\n Despite the defeat, the 24-year-old shot-stopper produced a Man of the Match worthy performance that kept the tournament favorites at bay for over an hour.<\/p>\n Pandor stood resolute between the sticks, racking up five crucial saves. His highlight reel began just ten minutes in when Iyad Mohamed conceded a penalty for a foul on Brahim D\u00edaz.<\/p>\n Morocco\u2019s Soufiane Rahimi stepped up to the spot, but Pandor guessed correctly, diving to his right to deny the host nation a dream start with a clinical reflex save with his legs.<\/p>\n Having earned the number one shirt following a stellar qualifying campaign, where Comoros defied the odds to top Group A with 12 points, finishing ahead of Tunisia, the Francs Borains loanee proved he belongs on the big stage.<\/p>\n He maintained a clean sheet throughout a frantic first half, frustrating the Atlas Lions’ frontline with superior positioning and aerial command.<\/p>\n The deadlock was finally broken in the 55th minute when Brahim D\u00edaz found the back of the net, followed by a spectacular bicycle kick from substitute Ayoub El Kaabi in the 74th minute. Despite shipping two goals, Pandor\u2019s heroics prevented a rout, keeping the scoreline respectable against the 2022 World Cup semi-finalists.<\/p>\n Born in Marseille, Pandor is a product of the Olympique de Marseille youth system before honing his craft at SC Air Bel and RC Lens. After a productive loan spell with US Boulogne in the 2024\/25 season, he secured a move to Belgian side Francs Borains on loan from Lens in July 2025.<\/p>\n This season, he has been a standout in the Challenger Pro League, registering 14 appearances, 5 clean sheets, and an incredible reputation as a penalty specialist.<\/p>\n With three points dropped, Pandor will be the linchpin for Comoros as they prepare for high-stakes clashes against Zambia and Mali.<\/p>\n If the Coelacanths are to replicate their historic knockout stage run from the 2021 edition, they will need their man in goal to remain in this world-class form.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By Oni Ladonette Ondesa Journalist, Kick442.com – Cameroun The Coelacanths may have dropped their…<\/p>","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":26148,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[140,39,5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-26147","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-afcon","category-african-football","category-football"],"yoast_head":"\n