Leonel Ateba (born 6 February 1999) is a Cameroonian professional
footballer who plays as a
forward
Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward.
Forward may also refer to:
People
* Forward (surname)
Sports
* Forward (association football)
* Forward (basketball), including:
** Point forward
** Power forward (basketball)
** Sm ...
for
USM Alger in the
Algerian Ligue Professionnelle 1
The Algerian Ligue Professionnelle 1 ( ar, الرابطة الجزائرية المحترفة الأولى لكرة القدم); known as Championnat National de Première Division or Ligue 1 for short, and formerly known as the Championnat Natio ...
and the
Cameroon national team.
Club career
USM Alger
On 31 January 2024,
Dynamo Douala
"Dynamo Electric Machine" (end view, partly section, )
A dynamo is an electrical generator that creates direct current using a commutator. Dynamos were the first electrical generators capable of delivering power for industry, and the foundati ...
announced the transfer of Ateba to
USM Alger for a period of two and a half years. The signing of the player cost 215,000 euros. On February 16, 2024, played Ateba the first match with his new club as a starter against
USM Khenchela in the
Ligue 1
Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...
. On social networks information was released, reporting the threat of the Cameroonian club to file a complaint with
FIFA
FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...
against the
USM Alger for not having received the transfer money. Legal advisor and expert in FIFA regulations gave explanations, the expert say that the payment must go through the FIFA Clearing House a new procedure established by the international body.
Also stated that Leonel Ateba was under contract with his club and did not have to negotiate his transfer on his own. Moreover, he acknowledged his honor by negotiating his employment contract himself, without the need for an intermediary. The expert explained that
USM Alger had obtained four mandates from the player’s representatives, and for this reason the club preferred Negotiate directly with
Dinamo Douala.
On March 8, 2024, Ateba scored a brace against MB Rouissat in the
Algerian Cup
The Algerian Cup ( ar, كأس الجزائر) also known the Republic Cup ( ar, كأس الجمهورية), is a football competition in Algeria, pitting regional teams against each other. It was established in October 1962, three months after in ...
where he played as a substitute in a match that ended 8–0.
International career
On November 21, 2023, Ateba played his first match with the
Cameroon national football team against
Libya in the
2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. On December 28, 2023,
Rigobert Song announced the list of 27 players for the
2023 Africa Cup of Nations
The 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (also referred to as AFCON 2023 or CAN 2023) is scheduled to be the 34th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the biennial international men's association football, football championship of Africa organized by the ...
including Ateba.
Career statistics
Club
International
[
:''Scores and results list Cameroon's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Ateba goal.''
]
Honours
Coton Sport
* Elite One: 2020–21, 2021–22
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bellatreche, Oussama
1999 births
Living people
Footballers from Douala
Cameroonian men's footballers
Cameroon men's international footballers
Men's association football forwards
Algerian Ligue Professionnelle 1 players
Coton Sport FC de Garoua players
USM Alger players
Cameroonian expatriate sportspeople in Algeria
Expatriate men's footballers in Algeria
2023 Africa Cup of Nations players