Diomansy Kamara

Diomansy Mehdi Moustapha Kamara (born 8 November 1980) is a former professional footballer who played as a striker. He played internationally for Senegal, whom he has represented at three Africa Cup of Nations.

Diomansy Kamara
Kamara with Eskişehirspor in 2011
Personal information
Full name Diomansy Mehdi Moustapha Kamara[1]
Date of birth (1980-11-08) 8 November 1980[2]
Place of birth Paris, France
Height 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in)[3]
Playing position(s) Striker
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
1998–1999 Red Star Paris 4 (0)
1999–2001 Catanzaro 34 (9)
2001–2005 Modena 82 (15)
2004–2005 Portsmouth 25 (4)
2005–2007 West Bromwich Albion 60 (21)
2007–2011 Fulham 59 (12)
2010 → Celtic (loan) 9 (2)
2011 → Leicester City (loan) 7 (2)
2011–2014 Eskişehirspor 95 (28)
2014–2015 Catanzaro 12 (4)
2015 NorthEast United 12 (3)
Total 399 (100)
National team
2003–2011 Senegal 51 (9)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Club career

Early career

Born in Paris,[2] Kamara began his professional career with Red Star 93 before joining Catanzaro during the 1999–2000 season.

He made 34 league appearances and scored nine times for the Calabrian club before signing for Modena. In three seasons there, he scored 15 times in 82 appearances, impressing many with his speed and agility.

Portsmouth

In August 2004, Portsmouth wanted to sign Kamara for a loan deal but eventually signed him for £2.5 million for a permanent transfer, making him their then record signing.[4] However, despite a bright start, Kamara struggled for form and injuries during the 2004–05 season, and after just one year at Portsmouth they took advantage of a clause in his contract which allowed them to move him on to West Bromwich Albion whilst only paying £1 million of his initial transfer fee to Modena. Albion paid £1.5 million for Kamara.[5]

West Bromwich Albion

Kamara made his Albion debut on 13 August 2005, replacing Kanu in the 60th minute in a 0–0 draw away at Manchester City. He picked up a yellow card in each of his first three games for the club. His first goal for West Brom was scored in a 4–1 Hawthorns win over Bradford City in the League Cup, on 20 September 2005.[6] It was one of only two goals scored by Kamara during 2005–06; his first league goal for the club was scored against Manchester City on 10 December 2005, Albion winning 2–0. Albion were relegated from the Premier League that season, but 2006–07 saw Kamara hit a rich vein of form, netting 23 goals in all competitions and helping Albion reach the playoff final. His goalscoring exploits earned him the Championship Player-of-the-Month award for October 2006,[7] as well as the PFA Fans' Player-of-the-Month award for February 2007.[8] He was also named in the PFA Championship Team of the Year[9] and won the West Bromwich Albion Player of the Year award.[10]

Fulham
Diomansy Kamara in action for Fulham.

On 9 July 2007, Kamara signed a four-year deal with Fulham for £6 million and the move was a club record sale from West Brom.[11] Following his move to Fulham, Kamara vow that he can score 'a lot of goals' in the Premier League with Fulham.[12] He made his debut for the Cottagers in a 2–1 defeat away at Arsenal on 12 August 2007; Kamara replaced fellow debutant David Healy in the second half. Kamara scored his first goal for Fulham in a 1–0 win at Shrewsbury Town in the League Cup, on 28 August 2007.[13] Four days later he notched his first league goal for the Cottagers, a superb late overhead kick to earn a 3–3 draw with Tottenham Hotspur.[14] After the match, Kamara told the club's official website that the overhead kick goal was "classed the goal as possibly the best of his career".[15] On 25 November 2007, Kamara second goal came when he scored the second goal in the match against Blackburn Rovers which the club each draw 2–2. On 29 March 2008, Kamara third goal came when scored against Derby County in a 2–2 draw. The draw resulted Derby County being relegated to the Football League.[16] Later in the 2007–08 season, after having a relatively dry spell in front of goal, resurrected Fulham's Premier League survival hopes with two goals in the last twenty minutes (plus a Danny Murphy rebound from a penalty saved by Joe Hart) secured a rare away win against Manchester City. Fulham eventually survived relegation, in the last game. Whilst playing for Senegal in a match against Liberia in June 2008, Kamara ruptured his cruciate ligament, an injury which required reconstructive surgery.[17]

In his first start for the Cottagers since his injury he scored a brace against Aston Villa and also made an assist to Danny Murphy to score, helping his side to win 3–1 on 9 May 2009. After scoring a brace, manager Roy Hodgson praised the striker good performance[18] His next match after scoring a brace came when he scored a winning goal in a 1–0 over Newcastle United on 16 May 2009[19] which Newcastle United were later relegated Football League Championship at the end of the 2008–09 season, the first time the club had left the Premier League after joining it in 1993.

After the 2008–09 season, Kamara was linked with a move to join French Champion Bordeaux who wanted him to replace the departing Marouane Chamakh who joined Arsenal,[20] with Roma keen to sign him as well. However, the move was rejected when Kamara is not interested in a move overseas and is hoping to find himself a new club in the UK.[21]

In the Premier League 2008–09 and 2009–10 season campaign, Kamara began playing less in the Premier League when his first team opportunities has been limited. Despite this, Kamara scored his only league goal in the 2009/10 season for Fulham in a 2–0 victory over Hull City on 19 September 2009. On 17 September, Kamara helped Fulham secure an away draw against CSKA Sofia which ended 1–1 in the Europa League. On 5 November 2009, Kamara took a penalty himself and scored after being fouled in the penalty box match in a match against Italian side Roma which later he later come off on a 46th minutes for Erik Nevland and Fulham went on lose with a 2 goals comeback for Roma. On 1 December 2009, Kamara suffered a knee problems which kept him out for 1-month and made his returned for Fulham in a 2–0 loss against Tottenham Hotspur after coming on for Zoltán Gera in a 72 minutes in a game on 26 January 2010.

Loan to Celtic

On 1 February 2010, Kamara moved to Celtic on loan until the end of the 2009–10 season, and Celtic had an option to make the deal permanent if he impressed during his loan stint.[22][23] His move to Celtic was allowed after Fulham brought Stefano Okaka on loan from Roma. Kamara had previously played under then Celtic manager Tony Mowbray when at West Bromwich Albion. He made his debut on 2 February 2010 against Kilmarnock at Rugby Park in a 1–0 defeat.

Kamara training for Fulham in 2009

On 7 February, Kamara scored his first goal for Celtic against Dunfermline in the Scottish Cup with a strike from the edge of the box; it was also the game that provided the first Celtic goal for his strike partner Robbie Keane.[24] On 13 February, he scored his second goal for Celtic and his first SPL goal, coming against Aberdeen in a 4–4 draw at Pittodrie and also provided assist Robbie Keane to score which Keane gave Kamara assist to score his first goal.[25] On 20 February 2010, Kamara provided an assist for Robbie Keane who scored a winning goal against Dundee United in a 1–0 win. Kamara them suffered an injury that kept him out about one month and made return on 13 April 2010 against Motherwell in a 2–0 win. On 25 April, he scored the first of two in a 2–0 win against Dundee United after returning from injury.

As his loan spell was set to expire, Kamara revealed he wanted to stay at Celtic permanently and that he would happily stay on at the club under interim boss Neil Lennon after the sacking of Tony Mowbray.[26] Kamara revealed that he set his sights on securing a permanent deal at the club and described it as his 'priority' to stay at Celtic. However the move never happened, as Celtic decided not to pay the £2.5 million buyout clause in his contract. Kamara returned to Fulham and set his sights on a move to his boyhood club PSG.[27]

Return to Fulham

Upon his return to Fulham, Kamara revealed that the newly appointed manager of Fulham, Mark Hughes, had made him stay and that he had been given a fresh chance. Kamara also revealed that he would have left Fulham if Roy Hodgson had stayed in charge of the club (he became manager of Liverpool instead).[28] Kamara did get more playing time for Fulham as the club was short of options following injuries to Bobby Zamora and Mousa Dembélé.[29] Kamara scored his first league goal of the 2010–11 season on 16 October 2010 against Tottenham Hotspur in a 2–1 defeat in the 30th minute at Craven Cottage. He also scored in the 2–1 defeat against Arsenal on 4 December 2010 at the Emirates Stadium in the 30th minute, where he played 73 minutes of the match and was replaced by fellow striker Andrew Johnson. Despite the loss, manager Mark Hughes praised Kamara's performance, whilst Kamara stated that he was keen to hold down a regular first team place.[30] On 8 January 2011, Kamara netted a hat-trick and played the full 90 minutes in the third round of the FA Cup against Peterborough United in a 6–2 victory at Craven Cottage. However, since the return of Zamora and Dembélé from injury, further opportunities were limited.

Loan to Leicester City

Leicester City signed Kamara on loan until the end of the 2010–11 season on 21 March 2011[31] after Leicester City manager Sven-Göran Eriksson confirmed his interest in signing him.[32] He made his competitive debut against Middlesbrough on 2 April 2011, making an assist in a 3–3 draw,[33] and scored his first goal in a 4–0 win over Burnley on 9 April.[34] He scored his second goal against Ipswich making the score 4–2. It was the last league goal to be scored at the Walkers Stadium before it was renamed to King Power Stadium in summer 2011. After his loan spell finished, Kamara admitted his contribution was disappointing at Leicester City but was open to a return.[35]

Eskişehirspor

On 24 June 2011, it was announced by the club that Kamara would not be renewing his contract and had left the club to sign with Turkish club Eskisehirspor.[36][37] On 10 September 2011, Kamara made his debut in the Eskişehirspor shirt against Beşiktaş in a 2–1 win. The following week after making his debut, Kamara scored his first goal for Eskişehirspor in a 4–0 win over Sivasspor on 18 September 2011. Since then, Kamara began a goalscoring form and is the top scorer for the club in his first season with 10 and is the second top assist with 5 behind defender Dedê with 10.

NorthEast United

On 7 July 2015, he signed for Indian Super League club NorthEast United FC.[38]

International career

Kamara has played 51 games and scored nine goals for Senegal.

Career statistics
As of 15 January 2011[39]
Club performance League Cup League Cup Continental Total
SeasonClubLeague AppsGoals AppsGoals AppsGoals AppsGoals AppsGoals
France League Coupe de France Coupe de la Ligue Europe Total
1998–99Red StarDivision 24040
Italy League Coppa Italia League Cup Europe Total
1999–2000CatanzaroSerie C2114114
2000–01235235
2001–02ModenaSerie B244244
2002–03Serie A295295
2003–04296296
England League FA Cup League Cup Europe Total
2004–05PortsmouthPremier League2542022296
2005–06West Bromwich AlbionPremier League26131292
2006–07Championship342042204022
2007–08FulhamPremier League28521306
2008–0912420144
2009–10910032123
2010–111021300115
2009–10CelticSPL9211103
Total France 4040
Italy 1162411624
England 1413595943214848
Scotland 921100103
Career total 26361106943229275
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References
  1. "Diomansy Mehdi Moustapha Kamara" (in Turkish). Turkish Football Federation. Retrieved 6 September 2019.
  2. Hugman, Barry J., ed. (2010). The PFA Footballers' Who's Who 2010–11. Mainstream Publishing. p. 230. ISBN 978-1-84596-601-0.
  3. "Diomansy Kamara profile". Fulham F.C. Archived from the original on 6 June 2013. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  4. "Pompey land new striker". BBC Sport. 20 August 2004. Retrieved 25 May 2007.
  5. "Kamara seals £1.5m West Brom deal". BBC Sport. 26 July 2005. Retrieved 23 April 2007.
  6. "WBA vs Bradford City". West Bromwich Albion FC. 20 September 2005. Archived from the original on 15 April 2012. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  7. "Baggies star Kamara claims award". BBC Sport. 5 November 2006. Retrieved 25 May 2007.
  8. "Kamara scoops PFA Fans' award". West Bromwich Albion. 1 March 2007. Archived from the original on 29 March 2012. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  9. "Ronaldo secures PFA awards double". BBC Sport. 22 April 2007. Retrieved 23 April 2007.
  10. "Kamara wins Player-of-the-Year Award". West Bromwich Albion. 17 May 2007. Archived from the original on 15 April 2012. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  11. "Fulham sign Kamara from West Brom". BBC Sport. 9 July 2007. Retrieved 13 November 2008.
  12. "Kamara: I will score goals". Sky Sports. 16 July 2007. Retrieved 1 March 2012.
  13. "Shrewsbury 0–1 Fulham". BBC Sport. 28 August 2007. Retrieved 1 September 2007.
  14. Mercer, Nathan (1 September 2007). "Fulham 3–3 Tottenham". BBC Sport. Retrieved 1 September 2007.
  15. "Golden Goal". Fulham Official Website. 20 September 2007. Retrieved 16 April 2014.
  16. "Derby County 2–2 Fulham". Fulham Website. 29 March 2008. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  17. "Kamara operation blow for Fulham". BBC Sport. 2 July 2008. Retrieved 3 July 2008.
  18. "Hodgson hails classy Kamara". Sky Sports. 9 May 2009. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  19. "Newcastle United vs Fulham". Fulham Website. 16 May 2009. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  20. "Kamara content at Fulham". Sky Sports. 27 July 2009. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  21. "Kamara snubs Euro offers". Sky Sports. 19 August 2009. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  22. "Celtic sign Fulham forward". Ontheminute.com. 1 February 2010. Retrieved 1 February 2010.
  23. "Celtic capture Kamara". Sky Sports. 1 February 2010. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  24. "Dunfermline 2–4 Celtic". BBC Sport. 7 February 2010. Retrieved 7 February 2010.
  25. "Aberdeen 4–4 Celtic". BBC Sport. 13 February 2010. Retrieved 13 February 2010.
  26. "Kamara wants Celtic stay". Sky Sports. 30 March 2010. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  27. "Kamara picturing PSG move". Sky Sports. 22 May 2010. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  28. "Kamara – Hughes made me stay". Sky Sports. 21 October 2010. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  29. "Hughes' striker hope". Sky Sports. 28 September 2010. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  30. "Kamara keen on regular role". Sky Sports. 6 December 2010. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  31. "Kamara Joins Foxes On Loan". Leicester City F.C. 17 May 2011. Archived from the original on 19 August 2011. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  32. "Foxes confirm Kamara interest". Sky Sports. 18 March 2011. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  33. "Middlesbrough 3 – 3 Leicester". BBC Sport. 2 April 2011. Retrieved 3 April 2011.
  34. "Leicester 4 – 0 Burnley". BBC Sport. 9 April 2011. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
  35. "Kamara open to Foxes return". Sky Sports. 9 May 2011. Retrieved 31 March 2012.
  36. Fulham's Kamara joins Turkey's Eskisehirspor
  37. "Player Departures". Fulham Official Website. 30 June 2011. Retrieved 19 April 2014.
  38. "Kamara's signing boosts NEUFC's strike-force". NorthEast United FC. Archived from the original on 7 July 2015. Retrieved 7 July 2015.
  39. "Diomansy Kamara". World Soccer. Archived from the original on 13 February 2012. Retrieved 19 January 2014.
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