Abubakar became the African Cup’s leading scorer

There were various reasons to hope in Cameroon’s national team forward. The “indomitable lions'” host status, a straightforward group, and a potentially easy playoff draw all projected at least a semi-final. Abubakar was also a full-time penalty taker for the national team.

In the first two matches of the tournament, Abubakar scored twice against Burkina Faso (2-1, both on penalties) and Ethiopia (4-1), and his odds of winning the goalscoring race plummeted to 1.3. Vincent scored four additional goals in the remaining games, extending his lead over the nearest pursuer and teammate Carl Toko Ekambi by three goals.