Roudolphe Douala M'bela (born 25 September 1978), known as Douala, is a Cameroonian former professional footballer.«Jogar no Sporting foi mais difícil do que ser educador de infância» maisfutebol.iol.pt
Mainly a winger he could also operate as a forward, and played professionally in five countries, mainly in Portugal. He amassed Primeira Liga totals of 213 games and 34 goals over the course of nine seasons, notably representing in the competition Sporting CP (three years), Boavista and União Leiria (two apiece).
Douala appeared for the Cameroon national team at the 2006 Africa Cup of Nations.
Club career Douala was born in Douala. He holds Cameroonian and French nationalities.
He started his professional career at Saint-Étienne but did not make any Ligue 2 appearances for the French club, moving to Portugal when he was 20 and signing with Boavista.
After two loans, at Gil Vicente and União Leiria (where he first made an impact in the Primeira Liga championship), Douala moved to Sporting CP,Douala joins Sporting; UEFA.com, 11 July 2004 scoring five league goals in his debut season while also helping the Lions to the campaign's UEFA Cup final, notably scoring against Middlesbrough in a 3–2 away win.Middlesbrough 2–3 Sporting; BBC Sport, 10 March 2005 Never an undisputed starter, however, he would be loaned for 2006–07 to England's Portsmouth on the very last day of the summer transfer window, with a view to a permanent signing.Douala becomes Redknapp's 10th summer signing; The Guardian, 31 August 2006
Speculation during the 2007 winter window had linked Douala with a move away from the club, with the player reportedly frustrated at his lack of first team opportunities at Fratton Park.Douala looks to end Pompey loan; BBC Sport, 8 January 2007 A transfer never materialized, however, and he revealed that "On the last day of the transfer window two clubs were calling me all day, but I said 'I want to stay'".; The News, 12 June 2007
Douala returned to Sporting when his loan ended and, on 14 July 2007, rejoined old club Saint-Étienne for an undisclosed fee.St-Étienne make double swoop; UEFA.com, 13 July 2007 After only one season where he appeared sparingly, he left for Asteras Tripolis in Greece.Douala quitte l'ASSE (Douala leaves ASSE) ; L'Équipe, 1 July 2008 (in French) A fruitless spell soon followed and, after agreeing a release from his contract, he signed with English club Plymouth Argyle on 22 March 2009, for the remainder of the 2008–09 campaign,Douala signs ; Plymouth Argyle, 21 March 2009 making his debut as a substitute in their 4–0 home win against Coventry City on 11 April;Plymouth 4–0 Coventry; Daily Mirror, 12 April 2009 however, he was unsuccessful in securing a long-term deal, and was released.
On 15 March 2010, 31-year-old Douala moved teams and countries again, signing with Belgium's Lierse,Twee nieuwe spelers en gesprekken over contractverlengingen (Two new players in contract negotiations); Lierse SK, 15 March 2010 (in Dutch) and the club returned to the Pro League at the season's end, with the player contributing with one goal.
International career Douala earned 17 caps for Cameroon, during five years. He participated at the 2006 Africa Cup of Nations, helping the national team reach the quarter-final stage.
International goals #DateVenueOpponentResultCompetition18 October 2005Ahmadou Ahidjo, Yaoundé, Cameroon2006 World Cup qualification
Honours
Club Sporting UEFA Cup: Runner-up 2004–05
Individual Primeira Liga: Player of the Month March 2004
References
External links
Biography at Anciens Verts