Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Gazelle Garoua they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Gazelle Garoua can pretend not to have heard.
Blaise Loïc Tsagué and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad30 Apr 2029
Words at Gazelle Garoua training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Dave Tessa is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Gazelle Garoua they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Player ratings12 Mar 2029
Isaac Maben, 20, plays like he has been here for years — 7.62
A mark of 7.62 means one thing beside a twenty-nine-year-old's name and something else entirely beside a 20-year-old's. Nobody at the ground needed telling which this was.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Gazelle Garoua this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Dynamo Douala left with the points after a 1‑2 defeat that will take some explaining on the terraces.
Squad12 Mar 2029
Isaac Maben falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Patrick Ondoa and Gazelle Garoua agree another 3 years.
“We were not good enough today and I am not going to dress it up.” Marcel Ntcham after 1‑2, in the tone of a man who knows the next question and does not intend to answer it.
In brief
SquadIsaac Maben is the weekend's best young player
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Gazelle Garoua can pretend not to have heard.
Some afternoons a goalkeeper is the team. 7 saves, several of them the sort nobody expects to see stopped, and a scoreline that flatters everybody in front of him.
Player ratings19 Feb 2029
Isaac Maben, 20, plays like he has been here for years — 7.75
A mark of 7.75 means one thing beside a twenty-nine-year-old's name and something else entirely beside a 20-year-old's. Nobody at the ground needed telling which this was.
Housseini Ousmanou and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad19 Feb 2029
Isaac Maben falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The board was up, the win was priced in, and then Stade Renard de Melong scored. There is no worse minute to concede in and the ground emptied in the silence that follows one.
A 1‑1 draw with Stade Renard de Melong leaves the dressing room somewhere between relief and regret.
The dugout19 Feb 2029
The manager’s verdict
“I am frustrated, honestly. We did enough to win and we did not win.” Marcel Ntcham was not hiding it after 1‑1, and nobody in the Gazelle Garoua dressing room was either.
There are footballers who have a good season and footballers a season is remembered for, and the second kind get their names read out in a hall in the summer. Gazelle Garoua will be quietly delighted and privately nervous.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Gazelle Garoua can pretend not to have heard.
Blaise Loïc Tsagué and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Squad1 Jan 2029
Words at Gazelle Garoua training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Isaac Maben is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Housseini Ousmanou, and the manager let it.
The dugout1 Jan 2029
The manager’s verdict
“That is on me. I pick the team and I picked wrong.” Managers say that when they mean it and when they need to be seen to, and after 0‑2 Marcel Ntcham left the room before anybody could ask which.
“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at Gazelle Garoua, another week without a signature from Dave Tessa.
Somebody watched every match in the division at the weekend and decided he was the best thing in any of them. A small honour, and most careers end without one.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Gazelle Garoua is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Gazelle Garoua this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Isaac Maben was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“It is not the end of the world and it is not good enough. Both of those are true.” The manager, after a 0‑0 draw, said the honest thing and then went to say it again inside.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Gazelle Garoua, and both men came out saying it was fine.
The 86th minute, half the ground already edging towards the exits, and Isaac Maben decided nobody was going anywhere. Aigle Royal de la Menoua had no time left to answer.
Blaise Loïc Tsagué and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
At 20 he is being sung about by people twice his age, which is an affection a signing has to earn over years and a local kid gets for turning up. It is also the hardest thing in football to live up to.
Ask anyone on the way out what separated the sides and you will get one name: Isaac Maben. 1‑0 against Aigle Royal de la Menoua, and the applause at the whistle was mostly his.
Squad4 Dec 2028
Words at Gazelle Garoua training over how hard people work
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Junior Leboum Meli is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Clubs make promises constantly and the page usually only hears about them when they are broken. This one was honoured, and the dressing room noticed that faster than any supporter did.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Gazelle Garoua is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Blaise Loïc Tsagué and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad16 Oct 2028
Isaac Maben falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
“We keep meeting, and we keep leaving the room with the same numbers we walked in with.” Another round of talks at Gazelle Garoua, another week without a signature from Dave Tessa.
“It had gone on long enough. I would rather have it out than leave it sitting there.” Ten minutes behind a closed door at Gazelle Garoua, and both men came out saying it was fine.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Gazelle Garoua they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Blaise Loïc Tsagué was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Squad2 Oct 2028
Michel Ngamaleu is the division's best young player this month
At 19 he has spent a month being better than everybody his age in the league, which is a different and harder thing than one good afternoon. Gazelle Garoua will try very hard not to make too much of it.
“I pick players who do the work. All of it.” No name was spoken; every camera still turned to Conrad Njuma, and the manager let it.
The dugout2 Oct 2028
The view from the dugout
“We did not lose. Some weeks that is all you get, and I would rather have the point than not.” Marcel Ntcham chose the glass-half-full version of 0‑0; the supporters left with the other one.
14 times he got in the way of something. Centre-halves get written about when they make mistakes and ignored when they do not, so an afternoon like this needs saying out loud: he is the reason the scoreline reads as it does.
The offer from Fauve Azur Elite for Arsene Mekila was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
Housseini Ousmanou and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
There is a version of every career where the player ends up somewhere he chose rather than somewhere that chose him. Yacine Boulegheb is living that version at Gazelle Garoua, and it tends to show in the first month.
10 days since the seat came open, a list of names doing the rounds, and nobody has signed anything. Every week this drags on the shortlist gets shorter.
Canon Yaounde will keep picking him until June and will get nothing for him after it. Holivan Almeida has pre-agreed a move to Gazelle Garoua, and the only people who lose in that arrangement are the ones who let the contract run down.
9 signings in three months. Every one of them may be an upgrade and the team can still be worse for a while, which is the part of a rebuild that never appears in the transfer-window verdicts.
He is not being dropped. There is simply nowhere in the formation Gazelle Garoua are playing to put a man who does what he does, which is a harder thing to be told than any team sheet.
Signings arrive with a picture of the club in their head, and this one’s picture was bigger than the building. He will play well and he will be gone, in that order, and everybody knows it.
Four paragraphs on the club website, none of them about football. The board thanked him, wished him well, and had the search under way before the page went up.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Gazelle Garoua have lost him in all but the paperwork.
“Somebody has to pick the team on Saturday, and this week that is me.” An interim appointment with no promises attached, which is how most of them start.
Footballers are asked about their boyhood club so often that nobody listens to the answer. Conrad Njuma has just signed for Gazelle Garoua, and for once the answer mattered.
Boardroom4 Sep 2028
Deadline passes with 9 signed and 9 gone
That is the business done at Gazelle Garoua until the window opens again. Whether it was enough will be answered on Saturdays rather than in a column, and the first Saturday is close.
Gazelle Garoua have gone to Fauve Azur Elite with a bid, and the supporters have gone to the internet with an opinion about it. Whether either changes anything is up to the selling club.
Blaise Loïc Tsagué and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Senior shirt numbers handed to boys the coaches have known since they were twelve. Most will not make it and all of them have already done the hard part.
The academy exists for exactly this morning. Patrick Ondoa has come through every age group the club runs and has now been handed a senior number, and the people who coached him at twelve will be the proudest in the building.
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Fortuna Mfou waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Colombe du Dja et Lobo is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Colombe du Dja et Lobo, and it is not being withdrawn.
Freddy Bomo falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Colombe du Dja et Lobo have lost him in all but the paperwork.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Colombe du Dja et Lobo, and it is not being withdrawn.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Colombe du Dja et Lobo this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
In brief
SquadArthur Yene falls out with a teammate over standards
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Colombe du Dja et Lobo people have started saying his name in the past tense.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Colombe du Dja et Lobo, and it is not being withdrawn.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Axel Bakoude will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Colombe du Dja et Lobo the goodbyes have quietly begun.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Colombe du Dja et Lobo this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad24 Jul 2028
Freddy Bomo falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Colombe du Dja et Lobo know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and PWD Bamenda waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Colombe du Dja et Lobo is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
Patrick Fergani has gone, the accounts have $46.0K in them, and the supporters have the feeling of having been sold something themselves. Good business and a good decision are not always the same thing.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Colombe du Dja et Lobo is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Yvan Mvondo Olama and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Arthur Yene was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
The dugout10 Jul 2028
Axel Bakoude is still being punished for one mistake
Nobody will confirm it and the team sheets confirm it every week. One error has bought him a spell as second choice that is already longer than the error deserved.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Colombe du Dja et Lobo have lost him in all but the paperwork.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Colombe du Dja et Lobo, and it is not being withdrawn.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Colombe du Dja et Lobo is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Colombe du Dja et Lobo this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Arthur Yene was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Aseol Adjm and Colombe du Dja et Lobo agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and PWD Bamenda waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Colombe du Dja et Lobo is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
Colombe du Dja et Lobo have gone to Dynamo Douala with a bid, and the supporters have gone to the internet with an opinion about it. Whether either changes anything is up to the selling club.
Yvan Mvondo Olama and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Freddy Bomo was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Hamidou Hamza trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
In brief
The dugoutThe manager makes an example of David Mbazo'o
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Colombe du Dja et Lobo is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Yvan Mvondo Olama was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Freddy Bomo was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Colombe du Dja et Lobo know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Colombe du Dja et Lobo is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Yvan Mvondo Olama was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Freddy Bomo is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“Thirty minutes, door closed, everything said. We shook hands after.” Whatever was in the room stayed in the room, and Hamidou Hamza trained the next morning like a man with less to carry.
Colombe du Dja et Lobo have let the market know Hamidou Hamza can be had. No price in the advert, but everyone in the trade knows roughly what it says.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Colombe du Dja et Lobo know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Conrad Njuma will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Colombe du Dja et Lobo the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Yvan Mvondo Olama was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Arthur Yene is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Colombe du Dja et Lobo have let the market know Hamidou Hamza can be had. No price in the advert, but everyone in the trade knows roughly what it says.
Another week, another link, another denial nobody quite believes. Colombe du Dja et Lobo know the market decides these things, not the back pages — but the back pages are louder.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Conrad Njuma will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Colombe du Dja et Lobo the goodbyes have quietly begun.
Yvan Mvondo Olama was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Freddy Bomo is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
There is a particular warmth a ground reserves for a 22-year-old it feels ownership of. Freddy Bomo has it now, and everything he does for the rest of his time here will be measured against the goodwill he was handed for free.
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Fauve Azur Elite waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Colombe du Dja et Lobo is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
The offer from Aigle Royal de Moungo for Yvan Mvondo Olama was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
“This is not anger. I have thought about it for months, and nothing that has happened lately changed my mind.” The request is on a desk at Colombe du Dja et Lobo, and it is not being withdrawn.
Fee agreed, terms agreed, medical booked. Conrad Njuma will be somebody else’s player by the weekend, and around Colombe du Dja et Lobo the goodbyes have quietly begun.
4 without a win now, and the ground has developed the special quiet of a crowd that expects the worst. One scrappy 1-0 would cure most of it; that is the maddening part.
Yvan Mvondo Olama was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Freddy Bomo is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Colombe du Dja et Lobo can pretend not to have heard.
4 wins in a row changes how opponents warm up: quieter, more glances across. Runs end, everybody knows that — but nobody in this dressing room is planning for it.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Colombe du Dja et Lobo is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Colombe du Dja et Lobo this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Squad3 Jan 2028
Arthur Yene falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
100 games in the shirt. Nobody sets out to build a record like that; it happens to a certain kind of player at a certain kind of club, and this town knows what it has.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Colombe du Dja et Lobo they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Colombe du Dja et Lobo this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Not a run of form — an actual step up, held for months. At 19 he is doing things at this level he could not do at the start of the season, and the coaching staff will tell you exactly which of them.
Successful dribbles: 21. There was always a defender in front of him and there was never a defender in front of him for long.
Squad6 Dec 2027
Freddy Bomo falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Colombe du Dja et Lobo will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Colombe du Dja et Lobo they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Colombe du Dja et Lobo this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Freddy Bomo is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
A 2‑0 win over Unisport Bafang, earned rather than given, and the sort of afternoon that sends everyone home talking about next week instead of this one.
The award goes to Edmond Sindjo, and nobody around here is inclined to argue with the choice.
The dugout8 Nov 2027
The view from the dugout
“We controlled it. There were spells I did not like and we will look at them, but the group showed me something.” Samuel Hongla, on a 2‑0 win that he was already picking apart on the walk to the press room.
A bone, which is the one injury with a calendar attached. Colombe du Dja et Lobo will name a return date and, unusually for this business, will probably be right about it.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Colombe du Dja et Lobo they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Henry Tchikeu and Colombe du Dja et Lobo agree another 4 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Colombe du Dja et Lobo this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Arthur Yene is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
Brutal, unambiguous and, for all the horror of the moment, usually less career-shaped than the ligament everybody fears more. 94 days, a clean timeline, and a return date somebody can actually plan around.
“I remember the meeting. I remember exactly what was promised in it.” Colombe du Dja et Lobo may remember it differently, which is precisely the problem.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Colombe du Dja et Lobo is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Colombe du Dja et Lobo this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Freddy Bomo was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“It is not the end of the world and it is not good enough. Both of those are true.” The manager, after a 0‑0 draw, said the honest thing and then went to say it again inside.
Bones knit. That is the one merciful thing about this injury and the reason Colombe du Dja et Lobo will talk about it more openly than they would about a knee. He will be back, and roughly when they say.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Colombe du Dja et Lobo have lost him in all but the paperwork.
Yvan Mvondo Olama and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
Not now, not at any price the club was prepared to say out loud. Stade Renard de Melong have kept their man, and Colombe du Dja et Lobo go back to a list with one name crossed off it.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Arthur Yene was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
It has been denied twice and printed three times, which is the usual arithmetic. Until Édouard Sombang signs something — a contract at Colombe du Dja et Lobo or anywhere else — this column belongs to him.
A conversation in the manager’s office, and a commitment that came out of it. Promises like that are cheap to make and expensive to break, and Bertrand Essiane Ndjongolo has written the date down.
In brief
The dugoutConrad Njuma asks for a word with the manager
Fee agreed, wages agreed, and Unisport Bafang waiting with a shirt. Nobody at Colombe du Dja et Lobo is pretending otherwise, and the supporters have stopped asking whether and started asking when.
Yvan Mvondo Olama was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Freddy Bomo was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“I did not sign to watch. Nobody does.” The oldest complaint in the game, and Colombe du Dja et Lobo will have to answer it with minutes or with a move.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Colombe du Dja et Lobo this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Freddy Bomo is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“I have nothing bad to say about this place. I just need to be somewhere else.” It is in writing now, which changes what Colombe du Dja et Lobo can pretend not to have heard.
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Colombe du Dja et Lobo people have started saying his name in the past tense.
The offer from Fortuna Mfou for Axel Bakoude was heard out and sent back the same day. First bids are rarely meant to succeed; they are meant to find out how loudly the door closes.
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Arthur Yene is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“The easiest signature of my career.” Adam Musah and Colombe du Dja et Lobo agree another 3 years, and the manager can plan around him rather than about him.
Terms are settled between the clubs and the rest is paperwork and a photograph. Around Colombe du Dja et Lobo they have already started talking about him in the past tense.
Yvan Mvondo Olama was at the centre of it, and by the time it was pulled apart there were three or four others involved. Training grounds are small places and long seasons make them smaller.
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Freddy Bomo is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“Ambitious players need ambitious projects. Draw your own conclusions.” Hamidou Hamza’s representative said it with a smile, and made sure everyone wrote it down.
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Colombe du Dja et Lobo have lost him in all but the paperwork.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Colombe du Dja et Lobo this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Arthur Yene is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
The list is a quiet document with a loud meaning. Luc Bide Ndohoungar may talk to anybody who asks, and everybody at the club understands what that means.
In brief
SquadQuestions about Axel Bakoude on the training pitch
The last thing about a transfer that is still about the player is his signature on his own terms, and it is there. Colombe du Dja et Lobo have lost him in all but the paperwork.
The clubs have agreed terms, and what remains is formality: a medical, a photograph, a signature. Nobody at Colombe du Dja et Lobo is pretending he will be back in the shirt.
Somebody said out loud what several people had been thinking. Freddy Bomo is at the centre of it, and the squad will now find out whether the standard rises or the pair of them simply stop speaking.
“I did not sign to watch. Nobody does.” The oldest complaint in the game, and Colombe du Dja et Lobo will have to answer it with minutes or with a move.
In brief
The dugoutMario Kouma knocks on the manager's door
Not a month, not a run of form — a whole season of being the best 20-year-old anybody in this division could put on a pitch. This is the honour that gets mentioned for the rest of his career.
Yvan Mvondo Olama and a teammate said things this week that will take longer than a week to unsay. It was not about football, and both of them play on Saturday.
25 games, 9 goals, and a squad option that has arrived without a fee attached. The interesting question at Colombe du Dja et Lobo now is not whether he plays but who he displaces.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Freddy Bomo was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
“Some decisions take a long time. This one took ten minutes, and most of that was finding a pen.” Steeve Lima and Colombe du Dja et Lobo agree another 3 years.
5 arrivals, an average age nobody would call a squad, and a set of parents being shown around a building their sons will spend more time in than at home. The scouting has already happened; today is only the paperwork.
The clubs have settled the fee and he has settled his wages. What remains is a medical and a photograph, and around Colombe du Dja et Lobo people have started saying his name in the past tense.
It was not about football and everybody who saw it knows that. Two men who have to play together on Saturday said things at Colombe du Dja et Lobo this week that will take longer than a week to unsay.
Somebody said out loud what several people thought about how hard another man trains, and Freddy Bomo was in the middle of it. The one dressing-room argument that is genuinely about football.
It is not much of a headline and it is the reason players believe the next promise. Colombe du Dja et Lobo told Hamidou Hamza something would happen and then it happened, which in this industry passes for remarkable.
“I did not come here to warm up in front of people.” He is out of contract eventually, he is old enough to count the weeks, and Colombe du Dja et Lobo will have to give him a reason to stay or an exit.
Yvan Mvondo Olama and a teammate went at it, and not about football. Training grounds are small places and a long season makes them smaller.
Squad14 Jun 2027
Freddy Bomo falls out with a teammate over standards
The oldest argument in any dressing room and the only one that is genuinely about football: one man thinks another is not putting enough in. It is also the row a manager privately does not mind having happened.