Francois Onana used to tell his young son, Andre, about "The Cat". It wasn’t so easy then to locate extensive footage of the legendary Cameroonian goalkeeper, Tommy "Cat" N’Kono, icon of the West Central African country’s finest showing at a World Cup, but the stories were many and vivid.
Some reckon N’Kono to be the most gifted keeper Cameroon ever produced, but, even in his prime, there would be arguments about that.
His near-contemporary, Joseph-Antoine "Jojo" Bell has ardent fans. For well over a decade, their joust over who should wear the No 1 jersey for the so-called Indomitable Lions was fierce, and felt sharply by the two rivals, men of different personalities and skill-sets.
More than a generation on, Cameroonian goalkeeping retains its special aura, its high status in world football. And it is still a theatre for argument. Andre Onana, the latest in a long line of admired Lions With Gloves and the new €55 million signing at Manchester United, would bear witness to that.
Two months ago, Onana was helping Inter Milan to the European Champions League final. Eight months back, he was losing his position in the national side during a World Cup, following tactical disagreements with his coach, Rigobert Song, and other management staff.
Cameroonians of Onana’s parents’ – or grandparents’ – generation watched that row unfold with a sense of déjà-vu. Back in 1990, when Cameroon’s goalkeeping expertise was at peak strength, a dispute on the eve of the tournament led to Bell, the first pick, being controversially dropped; N’Kono, assigned at that time a role as back-up, was selected.
The rest is history, N’Kono became part of the feted team that beat Argentina in the opening match of Italia ‘90 and missed out on the semi-finals only in extra time of a see-saw 3-2 loss to England. At that stage, no African team had ever gone so far at a World Cup.
No African nation had ever boasted such a worldly stable of keepers. In that era, when far fewer African professionals played in European leagues than now, goalkeepers from sub-Saharan Africa flourishing abroad were even more of a rarity.
Except, that is, for Cameroonians. Bell played more than 350 matches for various French top-division clubs through the 1980s and 1990s, and wore the captain’s armband for Olympique Marseille.
N’Kono, who had made a fine impression at the 1982 World Cup, staged in Spain, signed for Espanyol, where he has been based first as a player and then as coach for much of his life. He reached a Uefa Cup final – the Europa League equivalent – with the Barcelona-based club in 1988, and later became Espanyol’s long-serving goalkeeping coach.
There were others. Jacques Songo’o – just under a decade younger than N’Kono, now 67, and Bell, 68 – won the Spanish league at the turn of the millennium in goal for Deportivo La Coruna.
Carlos Kameni, now in his 40th year, was still playing professionally in Europe last season at the tail-end of a career that featured a Spanish Cup triumph with Espanyol, 73 caps for his country, and his own share of disputes with Cameroon’s management.
Onana, 27, grew up with this tradition, these role models. “Because Cameroon had the best goalkeepers in Africa, young players wanted to be keepers,” observes Bell, “and their parents encouraged them.”
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Case in point: “My father would tell me all about Tommy N’Kono, and how he had reflexes like a cat,” Onana recalled during his breakthrough season with Ajax, in 2016/17.
Even in the 1980s, N’Kono and Bell represented not just a single, powerful strand in one country’s rich football culture but distinct modern schools of goalkeeping.
“Tommy had his sober approach, Jojo his showmanship, a reflection of their characters,” recalled Claude Le Roy, who coached Cameroon in the 1980s and 1990s. Bell was more confident with his feet, more inclined to make ambitious passes outside his penalty box. N’Kono had his reflexes and a longer reach as a shot-stopper.
In Onana, there are both aspects. No keeper made more saves or kept more clean sheets in last season’s Champions League. Few showed greater inclination to also act as an extra central defender, stride well beyond the edge of his box and launch long, accurate passes. It’s his trademark, but also the tendency that Song thought risky at the World Cup.
There is little that is timid about Onana. He’s vocal, and happy to answer back to a senior teammate. He and Inter’s Edin Dzeko had a very public disagreement, on the pitch, during last season’s Champions League tie against Porto.
It is this forthright leader that Erik ten Hag, United’s manager and Onana’s manager at Ajax for three-and-a-half years, has pushed hard to recruit. Ten Hag will assume the risks in his proactive style – and back him to be the bossier, ball-playing upgrade on the departed David de Gea.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
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- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
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About Karol Nawrocki
• Supports military aid for Ukraine, unlike other eurosceptic leaders, but he will oppose its membership in western alliances.
• A nationalist, his campaign slogan was Poland First. "Let's help others, but let's take care of our own citizens first," he said on social media in April.
• Cultivates tough-guy image, posting videos of himself at shooting ranges and in boxing rings.
• Met Donald Trump at the White House and received his backing.
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• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”
• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems
• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.
• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%
• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade
• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels
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Rating: 4/5
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- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
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A cryptocurrency primer for beginners
Cryptocurrency Investing for Dummies – by Kiana Danial
There are several primers for investing in cryptocurrencies available online, including e-books written by people whose credentials fall apart on the second page of your preferred search engine.
Ms Danial is a finance coach and former currency analyst who writes for Nasdaq. Her broad-strokes primer (2019) breaks down investing in cryptocurrency into baby steps, while explaining the terms and technologies involved.
Although cryptocurrencies are a fast evolving world, this book offers a good insight into the game as well as providing some basic tips, strategies and warning signs.
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What is an FTO Designation?
FTO designations impose immigration restrictions on members of the organisation simply by virtue of their membership and triggers a criminal prohibition on knowingly providing material support or resources to the designated organisation as well as asset freezes.
It is a crime for a person in the United States or subject to the jurisdiction of the United States to knowingly provide “material support or resources” to or receive military-type training from or on behalf of a designated FTO.
Representatives and members of a designated FTO, if they are aliens, are inadmissible to and, in certain circumstances removable from, the United States.
Except as authorised by the Secretary of the Treasury, any US financial institution that becomes aware that it has possession of or control over funds in which an FTO or its agent has an interest must retain possession of or control over the funds and report the funds to the Treasury Department.
Source: US Department of State
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The biog
Name: Atheja Ali Busaibah
Date of birth: 15 November, 1951
Favourite books: Ihsan Abdel Quddous books, such as “The Sun will Never Set”
Hobbies: Reading and writing poetry
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Banned items
Dubai Police has also issued a list of banned items at the ground on Sunday. These include:
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Political flags or banners
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Bikes, skateboards or scooters
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In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
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Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
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LILO & STITCH
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Rating: 4.5/5
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Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
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Major honours
ARSENAL
BARCELONA
- La Liga - 2013
- Copa del Rey - 2012
- Fifa Club World Cup - 2011
CHELSEA
- Premier League - 2015, 2017
- FA Cup - 2018
- League Cup - 2015
SPAIN
- World Cup - 2010
- European Championship - 2008, 2012
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