Cambodia’s senior national football team fell 2-0 against Equatorial Guinea in the first of two FIFA Series matches on Saturday at the Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Stadium in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
Cambodia, popularly referred to as “Kouprey”, faced Equatorial Guinea from Africa at 2am local time.
The Kouprey struggled to compete against a team ranked a hundred places higher, conceding two goals in the first half. Equatorial Guinea’s first goal came just nine minutes into the game, when left winger Joan Lopez made a brilliant solo move breezing by three Cambodian players – Yudai Ogawa, Chea Chandara and Sin Sophanat – before scoring with his left foot. Cambodia’s goalie Hul Kimhuy tried to save, but the ball was too quick.
Cambodia sought to make the most of their limited chances when Equatorial Guinea accidentally relinquished possession. Halfway through the first half midfielder Yudai sent a long ball to forward Mat Noron, who was well-positioned to receive it. Noron then skipped past an Equatorial Guinea player, but ran into Cosme Ebang, captain of Equatorial Guinea, who snagged the ball to clear it away.
Equatorial Guinea, nicknamed “National Thunder”, scored their second goal in the 35th minute.
Joan Lopez, who scored the opener, assisted from the left side. Lopez sent the ball into the box to find midfielder Basilio Socoliche who used his left foot to place the ball squarely into the net.
Second half play was no different than the first as the National Thunder continued to dominate the game, putting pressure on Kouprey. Equatorial Guinea produced more good opportunities with more shots on goal. However, they were all blocked by goalie Hul Kimhuy.
Cambodia’s first on-target attempt came in the 80th minute from replacement striker Phan Sophen. He used his left foot to fire a powerful shot but the Equatorial Guinea goalkeeper caught it.
Even though Cambodia did not win, many Cambodian football supporters were pleased with the team, citing their improved performance. However, fans hope they can improve their scoring skill, which many say is still the biggest issue holding back the national team.
Cambodia is set to play one more encounter on Wednesday at Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Stadium against Guyana, a squad from FIFA’s North, Central America, and Caribbean zone. Guyana ranks 157th in FIFA’s world standings, above Cambodia at 179th.
FIFA said that its new Series was organised to provide more opportunities for international football clubs to meet outside regular regional tournaments and World Cup qualification schedule.
FIFA wants to promote competition between international teams to encourage more comprehensive development for football worldwide.
The inaugural edition of the new FIFA Series features twenty national football teams competing in four venues spanning three continents. Following the international match calendar, the FIFA Series is scheduled to run biennially during March of every even year.