Zola Matumona

Zola Matumona
Personal information
Date of birth November 26, 1981 (1981-11-26) (age 30)
Place of birth Kinshasa, Zaire
Height 1.65 m (5 ft 5 in)
Playing position Left midfielder
Club information
Current club Mons
Number 10
Senior career*
Years Team Apps† (Gls)†
2001–2002 AS Vita Club
2003 FC Saint Eloi Lupopo
2004–2005 AS Vita Club
2006 Primeiro de Agosto
2006–2009 FC Brussels 85 (17)
2009– Mons 75 (14)
National team‡
2002– Congo DR 26 (5)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of July 2009.

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of December 2009

Zola Matumona (born 26 November 1981) is a Congolese footballer. He is currently playing in the Belgian Pro League (D1) for R.A.E.C. Mons. He also plays for the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Contents

Career

A speedy central midfielder with excellent technique and ball control, Matumona walked out of FC Brussels on 2 November 2007 after he accused club chairman Johan Vermeersch of making racist remarks towards him during a crisis meeting at the struggling club. Vermeersch was reported to have told Matumona to "think about other things than trees and bananas".[1] The incident also prompted the club's main sponsor, Korean car manufacturer Kia, to withdraw their sponsorship of the Belgian side.[2] Although on 7 November Matumona agreed to return to FC Brussels after talks with Vermeesch, Kia refused to renew their contract with the club.[3]

Zola Matumona has since attracted interest from England. After visa problems initially delayed his trial with Birmingham City,[4] 'Zoe' trained with the club during the 2007–08 season and joined their July 2008 pre-season tour, where he impressed manager Alex McLeish in a 3–1 victory over Czech side FC Viktoria Plzeň.

International

Matumona made his international debut on 20 August 2002 vs Algeria in a 1–1 draw.He scored his first international goal on 5 June 2005 vs Kampala when Democratic Republic of Congo. won 4–0.[5]

References

  1. ^ "Matumona quits club over racism" BBC Sport, 2007-11-03. Retrieved on 4 November 2007
  2. ^ "Kia withdraws FC Brussels deal" BBC Sport, 2007-11-02. Retrieved on 4 November 2007
  3. ^ "Matumona in FC Brussels U-turn" BBC Sport, 2007-11-07. Retrieved on 18 July 2008
  4. ^ "Blues trial for Dogba" Sky Sports, 2008-04-24. Retrieved on 18 July 2008
  5. ^ "Zola Matumona impresses Birmingham City boss" Colin Tattum, Birmingham Mail, 2008-07-18. Retrieved on 18 July 2008

External links

Congo DR squad – 2006 Africa Cup of Nations
R.A.E.C. Mons – current squad