Carlos Kameni: "I came to Andorra for the joy of playing"

His previous contract, with Arta/Solar 7, the ambitious Djibouti club, had already raised eyebrows. Last August, Carlos Kameni (39) agreed to sign for one season with UE Santa Coloma, one of Andorra's top clubs. Injured in October, the Cameroonian goalkeeper, whose career has taken in Le Havre, Espanyol Barcelona, Malaga and Fenerbahce Istanbul, returned to action in February. Ahead of Sunday's match against UE Sant Julia, a 20th-round fixture, he agreed to talk about his time in the little Principality.

How did you end up at UE Santa Coloma, in Andorra?

I had left Djibouti a few months earlier, but I still wanted to play and enjoy myself. I had offers from Bolivia, Chile and Malaysia, among others. But my wife and children live in Malaga, and I didn't want to be too far away. When I was playing in Djibouti, I saw them very little, and it weighed on me. UE Santa Coloma's fitness coach, a Spaniard I had met in Malaga, asked me if I would be interested in coming to play in Andorra. I really didn't know much about the local league, but I accepted quickly. Not only did it give me the chance to get back to competitive football, it also meant being fairly close to my family and being able to visit them quite easily, as there is an airport in Barcelona, two hours' drive from Andorra. I signed at the end of the summer transfer window, in late August.

But you picked up an injury fairly quickly…

Yes, in October. A muscle injury that took quite a long time to heal. So I only returned to competitive action in February.

How is your time in Andorra going?

On the pitch, I'm in a team that regularly plays in European competition. The aim is to qualify for the Europa Conference League. We're 4th, so it's still doable. The league is semi-professional. Some players live solely off football, others have a job on the side. There are foreign players, quite a few Spaniards at the end of their careers, and others, younger, who came through youth academies in Spain but couldn't make the breakthrough. The level of the league obviously bears no comparison with Spain or Turkey. There is a lot of commitment, though. It's no joke: the teams – there are 8 of them – want to qualify for European competition or stay up, and there's a real competitive spirit.

A few months ago, you were playing in Djibouti, one of the hottest countries in the world…

It's a huge contrast. I went from 45° in the shade to sub-zero temperatures! It's cold here. We train in the snow. You need some time to adapt. We train on artificial turf. The matches are all played on Sunday, the same day, on the same artificial pitch. For example, this Sunday we play at 11 in the morning! And then we'll stay at the stadium to watch at least one other game. There aren't many people in the stands. Having played in the Spanish and Turkish leagues, it feels a bit strange, even though in Djibouti I had learnt to play in front of very sparse crowds!

"I still want to enjoy myself"

And what about day-to-day life?

Andorra is a lovely little country. It's very quiet, very safe. There's no stress, and you can walk around in complete safety. It's the ideal place for people who like skiing or shopping, in particular. It's a pleasant place to live, but there's inevitably far less to do than in Istanbul, Barcelona or Malaga. Also, they speak Spanish and French in Andorra, which makes it easier to settle in.

Financially, is it still worthwhile?

You know, I didn't come for the money. I have a decent salary, but that's not important. I earned more in Djibouti, but my motivation is to play. I'm like a 22-year-old kid, I'm happy to go to training, whether in the heat in Djibouti or in the snow in Andorra, and to play. Football is my passion, I still feel able to play for a few more years, but of course, it's the body that decides.

Are you thinking about next season?

I have a contract until 30 June. We'll see with the club's directors. I know that other clubs, in Andorra and elsewhere, are asking about me. I still want to enjoy myself on the pitch. I've experienced Djibouti, now I'm discovering Andorra. These are experiences I would probably not have imagined a few years ago, but they're worth living. I had a really enriching season in Djibouti. Yes, it's very hot, the pitch we played and trained on was as hard as concrete, there wasn't much to do there, but with the local players and those who, like me (Alex SSong, Dany Nounkeu, Alain Traoré, Diafra Sakho), had agreed to join Arta Solar, we had some great times, we won trophies, I met some great people… I really have no regrets!

Interview by Alexis BILLEBAULT