Cameroon seeks to convince dual nationals to play

Reuters
Brunel, a 14-year-old from Cameroon, plays football in Spain's north African enclave Melilla December 7, 2013. REUTERS/Juan Medina

YAOUNDE (Reuters) - The Cameroon football federation is to send a delegation to Europe in a bid to convince players of Cameroonian origin to make themselves available for selection at next year's World Cup in Brazil. FECAFOOT said they were focusing on four players in particular who had been capped by France at junior level. The quartet comprises three 20-year-olds - Axel Ngando at Ligue 2 club AJ Auxerre, Samuel Umtiti at Olympique Lyon and Jean-Christophe Behebeck at Valenciennes - and the 21-year-old Paul-Georges Ntep de Madiba, also at Auxerre. "We want to convince them to play for Cameroon, notably in the World Cup but also in the future," the federation said in a statement on Friday. "The idea is to clarify their status and then seek FIFA permission to change their nationality." Cameroon will be competing at their seventh World Cup and have been drawn in Group A alongside hosts Brazil, Croatia and Mexico.