Switzerland won, South Korea drew
Breel Embolo scored against the country of his birth as Switzerland defeated Cameroon 1-0 to make a winning start to their World Cup campaign on Thursday.
Embolo struck three minutes into the second half at Al Janoub Stadium as Switzerland secured a vital three points in a group that includes tournament favourites Brazil and Serbia.
Cameroon have now lost their last eight World Cup matches going back to 2002.
African teams had made an encouraging start in Qatar after all five failed to get past the group stage in 2018, but Cameroon will regret not making more of a first half they controlled.
Song said the rankings meant nothing coming into the tournament, but Cameroon's eighth World Cup appearance risks being brief with games to come against Serbia and Brazil.
The returning Son Heung-min could not inspire South Korea as the Tigers of Asia started their World Cup Group H campaign with a 0-0 draw against Uruguay in Qatar on Thursday.
It was a game of few chances as neither Son on one side nor Uruguay's fearsome strikers Luis Suarez, Darwin Nunez and Edinson Cavani could find a clear opening.
The early part of the match settled into a predictable pattern as Korea made a fast start and Uruguay sat deep, soaking up the pressure without giving anything away.
In particular, the South Americans kept Korean danger man Son quiet.
Neither side could get their game changers into the match, with Son clearly not fully fit.
