Eric Djemba-Djemba

At 42 years old, Eric Djemba-Djemba has this physical status:

Eric Daniel Djemba-Djemba (born 4 May 1981) is a Cameroonian footballer who plays as a midfielder for Swiss fifth division club FC Vallorbe-Ballaigues.

He has previously played club football in France, England, Qatar, Denmark, Israel, Scotland, India, Indonesia and Serbia.

In international competition, he represented Cameroon, having appeared for his country 34 times, including at the 2002 FIFA World Cup.

Personal life

Djemba-Djemba was born in Douala, Cameroon. He was declared bankrupt following his move from Manchester United to Aston Villa in 2007.

Djemba-Djemba was married and fathered four children before being divorced. Djemba-Djemba is a Christian.

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Club career

Djemba-Djemba came to fame in France, where he established a fruitful relationship with Mathieu Berson. His work as a feisty and uncompromising tackler for the French club earned him a move to Manchester United in the summer of 2003, when Alex Ferguson announced him as a potential future successor to Roy Keane, 31 years old.

Djemba-Djemba, an Englishman, established his fierce style on his debut against Arsenal in the FA Community Shield, with a tackle on Arsenal's Sol Campbell, which Arsène Wenger described as "obscene."

In 18 months with Old Trafford, Djemba-Djemba, found it difficult to recover, and he was eventually unable to establish himself as a player capable of replacing aged captain Roy Keane in the centre of the United Midfield. In the League Cup, he made a spectacular volley against Leeds United. Quinton Fortune swung in a corner that shocked Djemba-Djemba, who won it for the first time and took the game to the next round after beating Leeds goalkeeper Paul Robinson, who brought a 3–2 victory and advancing to the next round with a 3–2 win and progression to the next round. In a 5–0 victory over Greek side Panathinaikos, he scored only once more for United.

In the January 2005 transfer window, Djemba-Djemba was sold to Aston Villa for £1.5 million. However, the move did not do much to improve the player's image as he found it difficult to move ahead of Gavin McCann and Steven Davis in Villa's midfield. Djemba-Djemba was loaned out to Burnley for the remainder of the season after being limited to Arsenal for only once by late replacement Martin O'Neill on the first day of the 2006–07 season.

Djemba-Djemba made his first appearance against Burnley on January 13, 2007, playing the full 90 minutes. After a second bookable offence at Derby County, he was sent off for the Lancashire side, but he continued to impress with his skillful and effective play during his loan period.

All signals pointed to Djemba-Djemba leaving Villa Park in July 2007. He was the only member of the first-team squad not to be included in the North American tour, and his deal was terminated by Aston Villa in July 2007.

Djemba-Djemba joined Qatar SC after he was released from Aston Villa. He only spent one season with the Qatar-based club, but he managed to reclaim control of his football career.

Djemba-Djemba, a Danish firm, signed a three-year deal with Odense Boldklub, which was later extended for a year. He appeared in a trial with the club and made his Odense debut against former club Aston Villa in the Intertoto Cup. Odense won the match 1–1, losing 2–1 on aggregate. Djemba-Djemba's career in Odense impressed the club's followers with his solid ball skills and outstanding results. In his first season as an Odense player, he played good football and was voted the league's best player by many. Djemba-Djemba became the first player in the Danish league to assist with his sock in 2009, defeating him in the first minute with just one boot on, requiring him to finish the game with one boot. Djemba-Djemba was one of three other players to be named as the SAS Liga Player of the Year later this year.

Djemba-Djemba returned to England in 2010 by joining West Brom and Italian side Lecce. After heading to England for transfer talks, the move was broken, and it culminated in allegations against West Brom, the club and Djemba-Djemba, the club's director.

Since his deal came to an end during the 2011–12 season, Djemba's future at OB was uncertain. Despite pending talks, Djemba-Djemba has now left the club. He and Peter Utaka had been told by the club's officials that their contracts would not be renewed the year before. The club decided to release players sooner rather than later because their terms were not renewed.

Djemba-Djemba began a two-year deal with Israeli club Hapoel Tel Aviv on August 14, 2012. With the Tel Aviv-based team, Djemba-Djemba played a total of 28 league games.

Djemba-Djemba signed a two-year deal with Serbian side Partizan on July 24, 2013. He made his debut in a Champions League qualifying match against Ludogorets Razgrad on July 31, 2013, starting as a replacement in the 64th minute. However, Djemba-Djemba played for Partizan only during the first half of the season. Nikola Drinia's arrival on December 20th, ensuring that Djemba-Djemba was overseas requirements and that his deal was ended on December 23rd.

Djemba-Djemba signed a short-term contract with Scottish Premiership club St Mirren on February 5, 2014. He said he wished his move to St Mirren would help him earn a spot in Brazil's 2014 World Cup team. Djemba-Djemba was the club's highest signing when joining the club, according to boss Danny Lennon.

St Mirren defeated Dundee United 2–1. Djemba-Djemba made his debut for the club in the fifth round of the Scottish Cup. After making only three appearances in all tournaments, he was dropped by the club before the season and also failed to secure a spot on the Cameroon squad for the world Cup.

Djemba-Djemba went on three months unpaid at the club.

Djemba-Djemba signed a short-term contract with Indian Super League club Chennaiyin FC in October 2014.

Djemba-Djemba signed for Indonesia's national Super League team in February 2015, which was then officially known as Persebaya Bhayangkara. Following FIFA's ban on Indonesia for governmental involvement, the team was suspended before he could make his debut.

In 2016, Djemba-Djemba became a member of Châteaubriant, France's fifth-tier club.

In September 2021, he announced that he would no longer play competitive football.

International career

Djemba-Djemba was a member of the 2002 African Nations Cup and finished as runners-up to France at the 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup. Djemba-Djemba said he was the last person to have a chat with Marc-Vivien Foé before Foé collapsed on the pitch and later died in the hospital. He appeared at the 2002 World Cup for the second time. However, Djemba-Djemba was not eligible for the 2010 FIFA World Cup due to organizational differences. Despite his attempt to make the Cameroon squad for the 2014 World Cup, Djemba-Djemba was not included in the 28-man provisional World Cup squad and therefore missed out on the World Cup under Volker Finke's leadership.

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