MAT KOUO-DOUMBE (aka DOUMBE)

Full Name: Mathias Kouo-Doumbe

Born: 28 October 1979

Came from:    Went to: Released

First game: 24 August 2004   Last game: 17 February 2009

Appearances: 142 (134/8)   Goals: 4

Born in Drancy, in the north eastern suburbs of Paris, Doumbé, as he was known (and later known as Kouo-Doumbé) was the son of a Cameroonian father and central defender. He was offered a place at Institut National du Football de Clairefontaine (INF Clairefontaine) at the age of 13, alongside his friend Philippe Christanval (who would go on to play for Monaco, Barcelona and France) but his parents turned down the offer as they wanted him to focus on his schoolwork.

He did however, start his youth career with A.A.S. Sarcelles (1992-99) in the northern part of Paris. He later won a contract with Paris St Germain (1999-2001) and won a France under-21 cap against Romania but was let go from the Parc des Princes after picking up a serious ankle injury.

Looking for a fresh start, he moved to Scotland to join Hibernian in October 2001. Initially signed by Alex McLeish, he did not feature in the 2001-02 season, but was still handed a new one-year deal in June 2002. He made his debut the following season and went on to play under future Argyle manager Bobby Williamson at Easter Road. By the 2003-04 season he was fully established as centre-back and played in the 2003-04 Scottish League Cup final defeat to Livingston at Hampden Park. At the end of the campaign he rejected the offer of a new three-year contract after being linked with a move to Rangers. In total he had played 54 times and scored twice in Edinburgh's green and white.

Having declined Hibs' offer, 'MKD' (as he became known at Home Park) re-joined his former manager Bobby Williamson at Argyle on a free transfer in May 2004. He made an impressive start to the 2004-05 season, and was soon linked with a move to Premier League side Everton. Days later he was described by Williamson as being "very committed and very brave, or foolish, whatever way you want to look at it" after requiring 24 stitches in his head after challenging for the ball in a 2-1 defeat to Leicester City at the Walkers Stadium.

Doumbé went on to firmly established himself in the first team in the 2005-06 campaign, making a total of 43 appearances as new boss Tony Pulis focused on shoring up the defence, and he signed a new two-year contract in May 2006.

He continued to be an important player after Ian Holloway replaced Pulis as manager, and he played 30 games in the 2006-07 season. The following season, he featured just 14 times in the 2007-08 season under Paul Sturrock, who led with the central defensive partnership of Marcel Seip and Krisztián Timár as his preferred pair. In May 2008, he signed a further two-year extension to his contract, as he became Argyle's longest-serving outfield player, second only to goalkeeper Romain Larrieu.

Loan signing Craig Cathcart was generally preferred alongside Marcel Seip in the 2008-09 season, limiting him to 24 appearances under Paul Sturrock (in his second spell at the helm). He had a trial with Millwall in July 2009 after Lions boss Kenny Jackett admitted that he was short on defenders. His contract with Argyle was cancelled by mutual consent the following month. In total he had played 142 times and scored four in the Devon variant of green and white.

He then moved to MK Dons and went on to make 141 appearances, scoring 12 goals across four League One seasons, before being released at the end of the 2012-13 season. He had also won the Players' Player of the Year award, for the 2010-11 season..

He then moved the short distance from Buckinghamshire, to Northamptonshire, to sign for Northampton Town where he played 34 times and scored three times before being released at the end of the 2013-14 season as the Cobblers narrowly retained their Football League status.

Having completed 371 games and scored 20 goals, Kouo-Doumbé then returned to his native France and signed for Claye-Souilly, a club in Paris who played in the seventh tier of French football in the Seine-et-Marne League, one of the regional leagues below national level. The move also completed a hat-trick of clubs in his career, played in green and white.

After retiring from professional football in 2014, he transitioned into a successful second career in sports business and business development. He earned a Master 2 (M2) in Management of Sports Organisations and also holds the UEFA 'A' Licence and a French football coaching degree (BEF) which he initially began during his early PSG days. To support his studies in Paris, he even spent three years as a part-time coffee specialist for Nespresso.

Between 2017 and 2019, he worked at OnTrack Sport in Paris, focusing on commercial activation and market analysis for players, agents and clubs. He has also worked on the Ryder Cup (2018), as an Accreditation Coordinator and volunteered in temporary roles for major events such as the Beach Soccer Tour for the French Football Federation (FFF).

Since early 2019, he has worked for Business France, a national agency supporting the international development of the French economy. Initially as Operations Manager for the Sports and Leisure Department, since January 2023 he has been a Project Manager for Sport, Boating, and the Equine Sector.