By Martin Petty
DOHA (Reuters) – Switzerland’s Breel Embolo has divided loyalty when it comes to his native Cameroon and claims to be the country’s biggest fan, but for 90 minutes at the World Cup this week, he’ll have no doubts where his allegiance lies.
The 25-year-old striker was born in Cameroon, Switzerland’s opponents in their opening Group G match on Thursday, and says he’s confident his fierce pride and deep family ties with the African nation can be put on hold in Qatar.
“It’s very special. It’s my hometown and my mum and my dad come from there, my family, most of them come from there, so it’s a special game for me and my family,” Embolo told reporters at the team’s training ground.
“But most importantly it’s a World Cup game… I’m proud and happy to be here and hopefully I will play against them (Cameroon) but most importantly is playing in a World Cup. It’s always special.”
Embolo was born in Cameroon’s capital Yaounde and left for France age five with his mother before later relocating to Switzerland, where he became a citizen in 2014.
He made his debut for the Swiss national team a year later and has since played close to 60 games, enjoying stints in the Bundesliga with Borussia Monchengladbach and in Ligue 1 with Monaco, where he has netted seven times in 15 matches this season.
He is playing in his second World Cup, where together with Cameroon, Switzerland have been drawn with Brazil and Serbia, who they met in the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
Asked if he was really Cameroon’s number one fan, Embolo said “yes of course – but after Switzerland, and after this game”.
(Reporting by Martin Petty; Editing by Christian Radnedge)
