Valentine Nguele’s witty reply follows Cameroon’s historic Women’s AFCON triumph

Cameroon coach Valentine Nguele deflected a political question with the words “Desole ma cherie” after guiding the Indomitable Lionesses to their first Women’s Africa Cup of Nations title.

Cameroon secured a landmark 3-0 victory over surprise finalists Malawi on Sunday at Stade Moulay El Hassan in Rabat, Morocco. The success ended a sequence of three defeats in the final, suffered in 2004, 2014 and 2016.

Nguele was speaking at the post-match news conference when a Moroccan journalist asked about the wider atmosphere surrounding the national team. The question began by referring to accusations previously made by former Cameroon men’s senior team coach Marc Brys, although the journalist did not mention him by name.

Brys had blamed the failure to qualify for the 2026 World Cup on what he described as the damaging effects of Samuel Eto’o’s ego. According to the Belgian coach, the Cameroon Football Federation president’s influence had helped poison the environment around the team, amid repeated disputes involving his staff and the Ministry of Sports.

The journalist then appeared to ask whether Cameroon’s historic achievement with the women’s team had been made possible by the removal of the “political reasons” that had been mentioned.

Before she could complete her thought, Nguele interrupted. The coach made clear that she did not intend to discuss politics, responding with the light-hearted line: “Desole ma cherie”.

Her quick-witted intervention was widely praised by sections of the Cameroonian media, who highlighted the coach’s sense of repartee after a major achievement for the national side.

The victory itself represented a significant breakthrough for the Indomitable Lionesses. Cameroon had previously reached the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations final three times, in 2004, 2014 and 2016, but had fallen short on each occasion.

This time, they overcame Malawi 3-0 in the final to claim the continental trophy for the first time. The result also brought a celebratory conclusion to their campaign in Rabat, where Nguele’s side completed the decisive match with a commanding scoreline.

Attention after the final therefore centred not only on Cameroon’s performance on the pitch, but also on the coach’s handling of a politically sensitive question. Rather than engage with the controversy surrounding the men’s national team, Nguele redirected the exchange and kept the focus on the women’s side’s historic success.