Cameroon pulled off one of the greatest feats in its women’s football history this Sunday in Casablanca. Led by Bihina at her very best, the Indomitable Lionesses knocked out Nigeria (1-0) in the quarter-finals of WAFCON, ending a 13-year drought against the Super Falcons in official competition and breaking a near-total Nigerian dominance dating back to 1998.
Cameroon opened the scoring in the 20th minute with a superb direct free kick from Myriam Nyadjou, catching Chiamaka Nnadozie completely off guard. But the real story of the night unfolded in front of the Cameroonian goal.
For over 70 minutes, Nigeria launched attack after attack, with corners and clear chances, but could never get past a Bihina in top form - decisive as early as the second minute against Ajibade and ever-present until the end, especially with a crucial double save just before halftime and a series of vital stops in the second half against Kanu, Ucheibe, and Okoronkwo.
Even as the Cameroonian team was physically exhausted at the end, their goalkeeper held firm until the final whistle.
The wall
Over the course of the match, the Cameroonian keeper finished with a Flashscore rating of 9.6, nine saves, three clear chances denied, 2.93 expected goals prevented, three successful aerial claims out of four, two punched clearances, and 45 touches of the ball.
These numbers reflect a performance that allowed a team not originally invited to this WAFCON - brought in via FIFA ranking after the tournament’s expansion - to overcome the Nigerian powerhouse.
At the final whistle, the Cameroonian goalkeeper was the first to be congratulated by the entire team, who ran across the pitch to celebrate a place in the WAFCON semi-finals and qualification for the 2027 World Cup, as the semi-finalists automatically qualify for the tournament in Brazil. Bihina broke down in tears, overwhelmed by emotion.
"It’s a feeling of pride, our qualification that we wanted so much. We managed to break the curse against Nigeria, we turned things around. It’s the work of the whole team, not just mine," she insisted to CAF’s microphone.
"We are very grateful for Morocco’s support and the warm welcome we received."
Rightly named player of the match, she was carried in triumph by all her teammates as soon as the interview ended - a symbol of the incredible performance the 22-year-old goalkeeper had just delivered.
Her countless saves immediately set Cameroonian social media alight. Many users compared her to Manuel Neuer and Andre Onana, praising her reading of the game and authority in the box, while others didn’t hesitate to say she was better than Devis Epassy, the men’s national team’s starting goalkeeper.
On Facebook, a Cameroonian journalist went even further, writing that the country hadn’t been this excited about a goalkeeper since Fabrice Ondoa’s performance against Senegal at AFCON 2017.
Others simply called her a "national hero".
The goalkeeper Cameroon was waiting for
Born on December 28th, 2003, Kyria Inès Michaely Bihina made her top-flight debut with Canon of Yaoundé before joining Nkoldongo, the club with which she won a silver medal at the 2019 African Games in Rabat at just 15 years old.
On October 9th of the same year, she officially left Canon and signed a two-year deal with Eclair FF de Sa'a, where she immediately became the starting goalkeeper.
Her versatility stood out: on several occasions, she was even played up front, where her goal-scoring ability did not go unnoticed.
It was also at Sa'a that she crossed paths with Onana, who, during his visits home, shared his expertise with the club’s goalkeepers on distribution, reading the game, and decision-making under pressure - an experience that largely explains her current composure with the ball at her feet.
Thanks to these performances, she became a regular in Cameroon’s youth teams, first U17 then U20, before making her senior debut in September 2023 against Kenya in AFCON qualifiers - a match won 1-0, with her keeping a clean sheet even then.
After her contract with Eclair FF ended, she disappeared from the spotlight for a while before resurfacing in August 2022 in Portugal, where she signed for Racing Power, then in the second division.
The young goalkeeper quickly established herself as the undisputed starter and delivered top-level performances: in May 2023, she helped the club win the D2 title and secure historic promotion to the top flight. A year later, she was named best goalkeeper in the Portuguese D1, with 14 clean sheets, while Racing Power finished a remarkable third in the 2023-2024 season.
These outstanding performances caught the eye of Benfica, a European giant and regular in the Women’s Champions League, who signed her on February 1st, 2026, making her their second-choice keeper. In her first months with the Eagles, she already won the League and Portuguese Cup double.
With her imposing 1.77-metre frame and a career that has only accelerated season after season, Michaely Bihina was already tipped as one of the stars of this AFCON 2026 even before the tournament began.
Journalist Charles Armel Mbatchou now sees her as the natural successor to Annette Ngo Dom as the Indomitable Lionesses’ goalkeeper, ahead of Cathy Biya or Ange Bawou:
"She’s confident coming off her line, she reads the game well and anticipates when the defence is high." At 22, with this hard-fought qualification against the Nigerian powerhouse, Bihina has just reached a new milestone in a career that now seems destined for the very top of African football.