GETAFE, Spain (Reuters) – Centre back Yerry Mina scored twice as Colombia cruised to a 4-0 win over African champions Cameroon, who played most of the second half with 10 men, in a friendly on Tuesday.
James Rodriquez and Jose Izquierdo got the other goals as Colombia played a second match on Spanish soil inside a week after a 2-2 draw with Spain in Murcia last Wednesday.
The result proved a sobering reminder for Cameroon of the likely quality of opposition they will face when they meet Copa America holders Chile in their opening game at the Confederations Cup in Moscow on Sunday.
A red card for striker Robert Ndip Tambwe three minutes into the second half for retaliation left Cameroon at a distinct disadvantage but they were already 2-0 down at halftime.
Rodriguez opened the scoring in the 16th minute, collecting the ball in the penalty area, after Juan Cuadrado’s initial effort had been blocked, and firing home from a tight angle.
Mina made it 2-0 from Rodriquez’s corner just past the half-hour mark with a powerful header. He converted his second in the 51st minute after Giovanni Moreno squared a powerful pass from the left.
Cuadrado hit the crossbar just before the hour mark and Radamel Falcao, who came on as a halftime substitute, went close seconds later with a header.
Izquierdo added the fourth six minutes from fulltime with a close-range shot.
Cameroon only forced Colombia keeper David Ospina into making a single save, as he blocked a shot just before halftime from Olivier Boumal, who was making his first start for the Indomitable Lions.
The 2017 African Nations Cup winners rested most of their regulars for the warmup game after a 1-0 win over Morocco at the weekend in the 2019 Nations Cup qualifiers.
They now head to Russia where they also face Australia and Germany in their group. Colombia next play Venezuela and Brazil in August and September in their bid to qualify for next year’s World Cup finals in Russia. They lie in second place in the South American qualifying group.
(Reporting by Mark Gleeson in Cape Town; Editing by Toby Davis)
