The story was too good. Selected to participate in the African Cup of Nations (CAN) in Ivory Coast which ended on February 13 with the victory of the Elephants, Cameroonian Wilfried Nathan Douala was suspended on March 10 by the Cameroonian Federation football (Fécafoot) for a “double identity” problem. This “child”, as those around him call him, is actually called Alexandre Bardelli and is at least 23 years old, according to our information.
At the CAN, the midfielder from Victoria United, a club from Limbé (first division) – an English-speaking seaside town in the South-West region – entered the den through the most beautiful door, joining illustrious teammates like the striker Vincent Aboubakar or even goalkeeper André Onana. He was also, with Leonel Ateba, one of only two local players among the twenty-seven chosen. At only 17 years old – officially – the teenager was the youngest footballer involved in the CAN and his presence had even eclipsed the surprise non-selection of Eric Maxim Choupo-Moting, 34 years old, despite being one of the biggest stars of the team.
In his country, this frail anonymous person, tattooed from his legs to his arms, had already been described as a “nugget”, “the rare pearl”, “the most mature of all the 17-year-olds in the world”. “He’s intelligent in the game, especially with one touch of the ball. He’s too fast, a good dribbler. He has already given several assists to the team’s top scorer this season,” Valentine Nkwain, the president of Victoria United, assured Le Monde.
According to the latter, the teenager was spotted in June 2023 at the Donlap academy, located in Douala, the Cameroonian economic capital, and in just eleven championship matches, he pleased Rigobert Song, then coach of the Indomitable Lions (he has since been dismissed from his functions), to the point of inviting him to the CAN. “I was not surprised,” said Mr. Nkwain. He is so talented, you have to see what he does in the stadium. He is the future of Cameroon’s game. »
A rage to succeed without limits
But, very quickly, followers of the Cameroonian national team had doubts about the age of Wilfried Nathan Douala. “Even if his large beard and bushy mustache refute his age, he would really be 17 years old,” the online newspaper Camfoot.com claimed in December 2023.
Some also questioned the relevance of selecting a player who did not have very high level experience to battle throughout such a tough tournament and in a tricky group made up of Gambia (2-3 victory) , Guinea (1-1) and Senegal (defeated 3-1), defending champion (Cameroon was eliminated in the round of 16 against Nigeria, 2-0). Moreover, the boy did not play any of the four duels – he was not even included on the match sheet – but he stood out for his quirky dances and his songs to encourage his teammates before each match .
Two years ago, on January 21, 2021, during the CAN organized in Cameroon, Le Monde went to the Soppo-Priso training ground in Douala to meet the Oryx team, a legendary club with a glorious which was sorely lacking in means. With torn crampons or without laces, around twenty young people were running that morning, behind a ball and a dream: “to become a pro” and “to join the selection”, they assured.
One of them seemed driven by a limitless rage to succeed. He said his name was Alexandre Bardelli and he was 21 years old. He repeated that he wanted to “be a pro even if the conditions are not good”. In the country, on the continent, in Europe, in Asia. Anywhere. “It’s possible by sacrificing myself,” emphasized this attacking midfielder, tattooed from his legs to his arms. Until I reach my goal, I will continue to train. I love football. » So it was this “love” and this obsession to one day reach his goal that pushed this shy boy to kick the ball two or three times a day on a sandy ground surrounded by corpses of plastic bottles. The young man then agreed to be photographed.
Strange feeling of déjà vu. Certainly less sharp, Alexandre Bardelli bears a striking resemblance to Wilfried Nathan Douala. They have the same scar on their right eyebrow and identical tattoos: the number 69 on the left forearm, a cross near the right hand, three comic strips around the left calf, a tribal pattern below the knee right… “Yes, Alexandre Bardelli, it’s Wilfried Nathan Douala,” several former members of Oryx confirmed to Le Monde who requested anonymity. The young footballer would therefore have been 15 years old at the time, not 21 years old. Plausible? “Absolutely, the children from our area are not like the children from yours,” one of them argued, without blinking.
A simple “resemblance” between the two men?
However, a Facebook account and another on Instagram, dating from at least 2017, were, respectively, in the name of Alexandre Bardelli (still active, privately) and Mr_Bardelli (more accessible). Mr. Bardelli’s number – which he gave us at the time – is today that of the mother of… Wilfried Nathan Douala: his photo, with the Victoria United jersey, is displayed on the WhatsApp profile. Asked about the identity of her son before the African Cup, she remained evasive: “There are things like that. There are nicknames and everything that goes with them. It does not matter. » Reached by telephone, a few relatives had mentioned, for their part, a simple “resemblance” between the two men.
Le Monde then asked what was happening with the Cameroonian federation led by icon Samuel Eto’o two days before the start of the CAN. Asked several times, she did not wish to react. It was not until March 10 that she sanctioned the young boy for a “double identity” problem. According to the CAN regulations (chapter 20), the Confederation of African Football (CAF) can open an investigation to find out if there has been fraud or identity theft. If the facts are proven, the national team in question may be excluded from participation in the two following editions of the African Cup of Nations.