Cameroon defender Ambroise Oyongo expressed happiness after winning the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations title for the fifth time, defeating Egypt 2-1 on Sunday, saying he believes his team secured the title when they defeated heavyweight Senegal in the quarterfinals.
"It is amazing because we went so far. We worked very hard and it was difficult. We played against all the big teams in Africa," Oyongo was quoted as saying on FIFA's official website Monday.
"We played against Senegal, Ghana and now we played against Egypt. I think we deserved it. It was very difficult, but now we are champions," he added.
Ambroise Oyongo, who played every minute for his side in Gabon, helped Cameroon finish second in Group A of the tournament before beating Senegal 5-4 in penalties in the quarterfinal and claiming a 2-0 win over Ghana in the semis.
"After beating Senegal, we became more confident, because Senegal was the best team at this Africa Cup of Nations. So when we beat them, we were confident that we could win this competition," he added.
After winning the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations title, the Indomitable Lions qualified for the FIFA Confederations Cup later this year in Russia. Oyongo said he believes his team can go far in the international tournament, much as they did in AFCON.
"All the best teams from all around the world compete in the Confederations Cup," he said.
"I think we will prepare well for that competition. We have a good team and if we prepare as we did for AFCON, we will be ready and we can do something there."
"When you play football you have to be ready to play against all the best players, so we have to prepare for that and focus."
"We can play against Portugal, Cristiano Ronaldo -- that will be difficult -- but that is football. You have to accept that, you have to fight if you want to play against the best, so I will take up the challenge," The Cameroonian star concluded.
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