Lauren says his club comes first

The coach of Cameroon, Winfried Schafer, says he is planning another meeting with Arsenal midfielder, Lauren Etame Mayer, to convince him to return to the national side.

"I have to meet Lauren to know whether he'll come back or not. But I first of all need to know why he took the decision to quit," Schafer said in Yaounde.

The 25-year-old player announced his decision to retire from the national team in December, saying he wanted to put his club career first.

Schafer says he wants to carry out an investigation into the circumstances surrounding Lauren's decision to quit before the Confederations Cup, and wants the defender to be part of his squad.

The replacement of the ageing and less productive players is what preoccupies me now Winfried Schafer

Since Lauren bowed out rumours have been circulating about why he left so suddenly.

Many believe his World Cup match bonuses were pilfered by officials, but Schafer says he wants to end the rumours and get to the truth.

Cameroonian fans are desperately hoping to see the Arsenal star back in a Lions' jersey.

He is one of the few experienced players who could play a part in a new-look team.

Schafer has been criticised for a series of poor results, relying too heavily on a squad of ageing stars and not planning for the future.

"The replacement of the ageing and less productive players is what preoccupies me now. This will be done gradually to avoid setbacks," Schafer explained.

Asked if the present squad was not simply the same as that of his predecessor, Pierre Lechantre, Schafer retorted: "Djemba Djemba, Lucien Mettomo and Valery Mezangue are of my making."

Schafer promised that Cameroon would achieve good results in the Confederation Cup.