Olympic medal record
Competitor for  Cameroon
Men's Football
Gold	2000 Sydney	Team Competition

Idriss Carlos Kameni (born February 18, 1984 in Douala) is a Cameroonian footballer who currently plays for RCD Espanyol in the Spanish first division, as a goalkeeper.

[edit] Club career

Kameni was first spotted when, aged 16, he became the youngest footballer to win an Olympic gold medal, in 2000.^[1] This earned him a move to French club Le Havre AC but he was unable to break into the first team, and remained a reserve throughout his four-year stay, also being loaned to AS Saint-Étienne, and also failing to gain any playing time there.

Kameni almost moved to Premier League Wolverhampton Wanderers on a season-long loan for 2003-04, but the deal collapsed after he was not granted a UK work permit.^[2] Aged 20, he finally left for Spanish side RCD Espanyol in July 2004, for $600,000,^[3] and quickly became its first-choice, winning the Spanish Cup in his second year. In 2006-07, Kameni was the undisputed starter, so Gorka Iraizoz was picked for the Catalans' UEFA Cup runner-up campaign.

In 2008-09, a tense season for Espanyol, which ranked in the bottom three for a lengthy period, Kameni had two incidents: first, he had a near-physical confrontation with a fan (who first insulted the player) after a training session, in January,^[4] then fought with teammate Grégory Béranger in another training session, in May.^[5] He still featured in 37 out of 38 league contests, being essential to the side's maintenance.

[edit] International career

A senior international since the age of 17, Kameni was part of the national team at the 2004 African Nations Cup. He won the award for the best African Goalkeeper for 2006-07,^[6] after being runner-up in the previous season.

[edit] Personal life

Kameni's older brother, Mathurin, is also a footballer, a goalkeeper, and a Cameroon international.

[edit] Honours

[edit] Club

• RCD Espanyol:
  • Spanish Cup: 2005-06

[edit] Country

• Summer Olympics: Gold medal 2000
• African Cup of Nations: 2002

[edit] Individual

• Best African Goalkeeper: 2006-07

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Espanyol profile
• BDFutbol profile
• Carlos Kameni career stats at Soccerbase
• Idriss Carlos Kameni FIFA competition record
• La Liga review

v • d • e Cameroon squad – 2002 FIFA World Cup 1 Alioum • 2 Tchato • 3 Wome • 4 Song • 5 Kalla • 6 Njanka • 7 Ndo • 8 Geremi • 9 Eto'o • 10 Mboma • 11 Ndiefi • 12 Lauren • 13 Mettomo • 14 Epalle • 15 Alnoudji • 16 Songo'o • 17 Foé • 18 Suffo • 19 Djemba‑Djemba • 20 Olembé • 21 Job • 22 Kameni • 23 Ngom Kome • Coach: Schäfer

v • d • e Cameroon squad – 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup Runners-up 1 Kameni • 2 Tchato • 3 Perrier-Doumbé • 4 Song • 5 Atouba • 6 Njanka • 7 M'bami • 8 Geremi • 9 Eto'o • 10 Emana • 11 Ndiefi • 12 Kwekeu • 13 Mettomo • 14 Epalle • 15 Bahoken • 16 Mezague • 17 Foé • 18 Idrissou • 19 Djemba-Djemba • 20 Falemi • 21 Job • 22 Ngon Adjam • 23 Eboué • Coach: Schäfer

v • d • e Cameroon squad – 2004 Africa Cup of Nations 1 Kameni • 2 Perrier-Doumbé • 3 Tchato • 4 Song • 5 Atouba • 6 Njanka • 7 M'bami • 8 Geremi • 9 Eto'o • 10 Mboma • 11 Ndiefi • 12 Falemi • 13 Mettomo • 14 Makoun • 15 Bahoken • 16 Tignyemb • 17 Kameni • 18 Idrissou • 19 Djemba-Djemba • 20 Olembé • 21 Mezague • 22 D. N. Kome • Coach: Schäfer

v • d • e Cameroon squad – 2006 Africa Cup of Nations 1 Kameni • 2 Ateba • 3 Atouba • 4 Song • 5 Wome • 6 Angbwa • 7 Kome • 8 Geremi • 9 Eto'o • 10 Emana • 11 Makoun • 12 Deumi • 13 Feutchine • 14 Saidou • 15 Webó • 16 Hamidou • 17 Edebe • 18 Douala • 19 Djemba-Djemba • 20 Olembé • 21 Lauren • 22 Mbarga • 23 Meyong • Coach: Artur Jorge

v • d • e Cameroon squad – 2008 Africa Cup of Nations Runners-up 1 Kameni • 2 Binya • 3 Tchato • 4 R. Song • 5 Atouba • 6 Angbwa • 7 M'bami • 8 Geremi • 9 Eto'o • 10 Emana • 11 Makoun • 12 N'Kong • 13 N'Guémo • 14 Epalle • 15 A. Song • 16 Hamidou • 17 Idrissou • 18 Tomou • 19 Mbia • 20 Essola • 21 Job • 22 Mbarga • 23 Bikey • Coach: Pfister