Pierre Womé

Pierre Nlend Womé (born 26 March 1979) is a Cameroonian former professional footballer who played as a defender. A journeyman, Womé was a versatile and skillful left wingback who played for 14 clubs in six countries. At international level, he made 68 FIFA-official appearances scoring 1 goal for the Cameroon national team.[1]

Pierre Womé
Womé with Werder Bremen in 2006
Personal information
Full name Pierre Nlend Womé
Date of birth (1979-03-26) 26 March 1979
Place of birth Douala, Cameroon
Height 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)
Position(s) Defender
Youth career
1993–1994 Fogape
1994–1996 Canon Yaoundé
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1996–1997 Vicenza 3 (0)
1997–1998 Lucchese 24 (2)
1998–1999 Roma 8 (0)
1999–2002 Bologna 47 (3)
2002–2003 Fulham 14 (1)
2003–2004 Espanyol 23 (1)
2005 Brescia 16 (3)
2005–2006 Internazionale 13 (0)
2006–2008 Werder Bremen 28 (2)
2008–2010 1. FC Köln 30 (0)
2011–2012 Sapins 17 (0)
2012–2014 Canon Yaoundé 25 (5)
2014 UMS de Loum 0 (0)
2014 Renaissance de Ngoumou
2014–2015 Chambly 21 (0)
2015–2016 Roye-Noyon 18 (2)
Total 287 (19)
National team
2000 Cameroon Olympic
1995–2012 Cameroon 68 (1)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Club career

After spending his youth career at Fogape Yaoundé and the relatively eminent regional side Canon Yaoundé, Womé moved to Italy from Cameroon in the summer of 1996 to start his professional career. He began his senior career at Vicenza Calcio and spent almost seven years playing in Italy until moving to English Premier League side Fulham FC in August 2002.[2] He was sold to Bologna F.C. 1909 in a co-ownership deal for 6 billion lire in 1999,[3] until Roma acquired him for 2 billion lire in the same summer that Francesco Antonioli, Amedeo Mangone and Alessandro Rinaldi joined Roma for 10 billion lire, 13 billion lire and 6 billion lire respectively. In June 2000 Bologna acquired Womé outright for a fee of 1 million lire. During his time in England at Fulham, Womé scored once in the league, in a 3–0 win over West Brom in February 2003.[4]

After playing for some notable clubs, including RCD Espanyol, F.C. Internazionale Milano and SV Werder Bremen, Womé joined 1. FC Köln in the summer of 2008[5] and left the team on 30 June 2010.

In late February 2012, it was announced that Womé would join Coton Sport FC de Garoua in his homeland.[6][7]

From 2012 to 2014, Womé played for Canon Yaoundé, also of the Elite One.[8]

In January 2014, he moved to Canon Yaoundé's league rivals UMS de Loum.[9][10] After not having made an appearance under two coaches, he decided to leave the city and return to Yaoundé. The club's president, Pierre Kwemo, threatened to take Womé to court for "fraud and breach of trust".[11] In March, two months after joining the club, he agreed the termination of his contract.[12]

In March 2014, shortly after his release by UMS de Loum, he joined Renaissance de Ngoumou.[12][13]

In September 2014, Womé signed with Championnat National side FC Chambly.[14][15]

In 2015, he joined French fourth-tier side US Roye-Noyon.[16]

International career

Womé was a regular starter in the left back position for Cameroon during the late 1990s and early 2000s. He was a key member of the squads that won consecutive African Cup of Nations titles in 2000 and 2002 and the Olympic gold medal in 2000. All three tournaments were won on penalty shoot-outs, and Womé was a taker in all three victories. In the Olympic gold medal match, Womé scored the fifth and decisive penalty to win the title for his country. He also scored from the spot in the 2000 African Cup of Nations final, but his penalty in the following tournament was saved by Senegal's Tony Sylva. Womé also played as Cameroon's first choice left back in the 1998 and 2002 World Cups.

On 8 October 2005, Womé missed a 95th-minute penalty during Cameroon's final World Cup qualifier against Egypt that would have sent the Indomitable Lions to the 2006 FIFA World Cup; unfortunately for Womé he cannoned the shot off the outside of the post and Ivory Coast qualified at their expense.

During a press conference several days afterward, Womé said about the penalty: “No one wanted to take that penalty. No one. Neither Samuel Eto'o nor our captain Rigobert Song, because they knew what could have happened if they missed. I have always had the courage and I went to the spot.” He also claimed that some Cameroon fans wanted to kill him.[17]

On 19 March 2007, Womé announced his retirement from international football.[18] He later returned to the team in 2009 for a 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification match against Morocco.[19]

Post-playing career

In March 2017, Womé was appointed sporting director of Canon Yaoundé by the club's president Emmannuel Mve.[8][20]

Honours

Club

Werder Bremen

International

Cameroon

References
  1. Pierre Womé at National-Football-Teams.com
  2. "Fulham snap up Wome". BBC. 7 August 2002. Retrieved 13 May 2012.
  3. "BILANCIO D'ESERCIZIO E CONSOLIDATO DI GRUPPO AL 30 GIUGNO 2000" (PDF). AS Roma (in Italian). Borsa Italiana Archive. 28 June 2001. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 24 March 2015.
  4. "Fulham overpower Baggies". BBC. 19 February 2003. Retrieved 22 August 2009.
  5. Chris Ives (29 May 2008). "Wome seals Cologne move". Sky Sports. Retrieved 29 May 2008.
  6. "Wome calls Coton Sport home". soccerway.com. 24 February 2012.
  7. "Former Cameroon international Pierre Wome joins Coton Sport". Goal. 25 February 2012. Retrieved 23 August 2017.
  8. "Canon de Yaoundé : Wome Nlend, directeur sportif". Camer.be (in French). 28 March 2017. Retrieved 23 August 2017.
  9. "Pierre Wome Nlend à UMS de Loum". CamerounSports (in French). 25 January 2014. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
  10. Tchapmi, Christian (30 January 2014). "Pierre Wome Nlend: "Pour préserver la famille, j'ai pensé qu'il était important que je parte"". cameroun24.net (in French). Retrieved 4 March 2020.
  11. "Cameroun - UMS de Loum: Pierre Kwemo menace de trainer Pierre Womé Nlend au tribunal pour escroquerie et abus de confiance". 237online.com (in French). 27 February 2014. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
  12. "Cameroun. Renaissance Ngoumou : Womé débute mal". Cameroonvoice (in French). 17 March 2014. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
  13. "Transferts: Wome Nlend s'engage à Renaissance de Ngoumou". Camernews (in French). Retrieved 4 March 2020.
  14. "FOOTBALL: Pierre Womé s'engage avec Chambly". Le Parisien (in French). 24 September 2014. Retrieved 4 March 2020.
  15. Desmaretz, Vincent (25 September 2014). "FOOTBALL (National) Pierre Womé (Chambly): "Je suis prêt"". Courrier picard (in French). Retrieved 4 March 2020.
  16. Pauluzzi, Valentin (8 October 2015). "Pierre Womé : « Solari est le mec le plus fort avec qui j'ai joué". So Foot (in French). Retrieved 23 August 2017.
  17. "Wome reveals fears for his life". BBC News. 11 October 2005.
  18. "Wome quits Cameroon". BBC Sport. 19 March 2007. Retrieved 6 April 2008.
  19. "Wome Nlend, the return of the fallen Lion". mtnfootball.co. 15 August 2009. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 21 June 2013.
  20. "Wome Nlend, nouveau Directeur sportif du Canon". CamerounSports (in French). 24 March 2017. Retrieved 23 August 2017.
  21. "Ligapokal, 2006, Finale". dfb.de. Retrieved 5 November 2020.
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