Despite their illustrious past, Monaco currently play in Ligue 2, the second tier of French football, and Vahirua comes to them from Ligue 1 side AS Nancy-Lorraine.
He is not worried about stepping down a division as he is joining such a big club and believes his new team will be amongst the league’s front-runners.
“I know I will be playing in Ligue 2 but it is special because it is Monaco,” he says. “The team has a great chance to win promotion to Ligue 1 this season.”
Monaco are based in the southern part of France and Vahirua is pleased to be returning to an area he knows well after a three-year stint with Nice from 2004.
“It is also an opportunity for me to come back to the south of France. I am not sure yet when I will get to play as the deal has to be cleared but I can’t wait to get on the field.”
Marama’s career in France began in 1998 with FC Nantes and he has gone on to play over 300 games and score nearly 70 goals in the country’s premier division. He was born in Papeete and first learned his trade with Tahitian club AS Pirea before heading to Europe to join the Nantes academy.
He was capped six times at U-20 level by France but, due to his club committments, has never appeared for the country of his birth. Tahiti coach Eddy Etaeta is keen for the 31-year-old to be involved in the qualifying path for the FIFA World Cup Brazil 2014 though and believes his experience – along with that of Tahiti’s only other fulltime professional, Alvin Tehau – will be invaluable.
Tahiti’s quest to qualify for Brazil 2014 begins when they enter stage two of the OFC Nation’s Cup in Fiji in June of next year.
“I think we will have a very competitive team,” Etaeta says. “We can count on our professionals, Marama and Alvin, and will also have players back from the FIFA Beach Soccer World Cup. Most of the team will also have competed in the Pacific Games, which take place soon in New Caledonia.”
Vahirua certainly has a lot to offer after gaining a wealth of top-class experience during his time as a professional. He lifted the French Cup with Nantes in 2000 and topped that a year later when the club won the Ligue 1 title.
He was named OFC Player of the Year in 2005.
Footballing talent clearly runs in the family as cousin Pascal Vahirua played 22 times for the France national team.
Vahirua joins a Monaco side looking to get back on track after being relegated last season for the first time in 34 years. The Laurent Banide-coached team is in 12th spot on the Ligue 2 ladder after beginning the season with a pair of draws.

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