Angu Lesley Ngwa Akonwi
Football Writer,kick442.com-Cameroon
The statement came sharp and cold — “I decide my future. It’s up to me to leave or stay, not you.”
It wasn’t arrogance. It was exhaustion.
Marc Brys’ defiance in the face of mounting criticism was less a power play and more a cry from within a system that’s slowly consuming itself.
Cameroon football has always thrived on passion, but lately that passion has turned poisonous. What should have been a period of rebuilding for the Indomitable Lions has instead descended into infighting, political tension, and mistrust. The coach, the federation, and even the ministry have all been pulling in different directions — each fighting to prove who truly runs the team.
Brys, appointed amid controversy and institutional chaos, walked into a job already on fire. Before he could even pick his first squad, there were arguments over the legitimacy of his appointment. Before his first match, debates raged over whether he was “Eto’o’s man” or “the Ministry’s coach.”
And now, after a few uneven results — a defeat in Cape Verde and a draw with Angola — the knives are out once again.
But what chance does any coach have when the battle for control overshadows the game itself?
Training camps are clouded by politics, press conferences by accusations, and even player selections are dissected through the lens of loyalty rather than performance. Cameroon’s rich football heritage — the very essence that once made the Lions indomitable — risks being swallowed by its own internal wars.
On the pitch, Brys’ team shows flashes of identity: disciplined defending, glimpses of cohesion, moments where you feel something is beginning to form. Yet off the pitch, the noise never stops. Every decision is second-guessed. Every stumble becomes ammunition for a faction.
In truth, Brys’ quote wasn’t aimed at fans — it was aimed at the system. A reminder that coaches can’t build when the foundation keeps shifting beneath them. His words, “Players are not machines,” reflect not only his players’ fatigue but also the draining environment that surrounds them.
The sad irony is that Cameroon still has the talent to compete with Africa’s best — Onana, Zambo Anguissa, Carlos Baleba, Vincent Aboubakar, Bryan Mbeumo — names any coach would dream of managing. But brilliance can’t bloom amid turbulence.
Cameroon’s football needs more than tactics or substitutions; it needs stability, respect, and unity of purpose. Until then, whoever sits on the bench — be it Brys or the next man — will keep fighting ghosts in the corridors of power rather than opponents on the field.
For now, Marc Brys stands his ground — not as a defiant egotist, but as a professional refusing to be a casualty of chaos. His words echo a deeper truth: the problem is not one man’s future, but the future of Cameroonian football itself.
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