The first match—and goal—of Thursday’s World Cup slate carried a bit of extra meaning for Breel Embolo.
The Switzerland striker opened the scoring against Cameroon less than three minutes into the second half, but he didn’t celebrate what would otherwise be a moment of pure joy. Embolo was born in Cameroon, moving when he was 5, and out of respect for his native land, he simply put his hands up and let his teammates do the more boisterous celebrating for the go-ahead strike. Chicago Fire star and Swiss veteran Xherdan Shaqiri teed up the 25-year-old Monaco forward, who was left unmarked in the center of the box and was clinical with his finish.
Not only was it a go-ahead goal, it wound up being a game-winning one, netting three important points for the Swiss while dealing a setback to the Indomitable Lions before both sides face Brazil and Serbia in Group G.
As for Embolo, he had addressed the potentially awkward nature of the World Cup match in the days leading up to it.
"It's very special. It's my hometown and my mom 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 said. “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."
