Junior Malanda

Junior Malanda

Malanda with Wolfsburg in 2014
Personal information
Full nameBernard Malanda-Adje
Date of birth28 August 1994
Place of birthBrussels, Belgium
Date of death10 January 2015 (aged 20)
Place of deathPorta Westfalica, Germany
Height1.81 m (5 ft 11 1⁄2 in)
Playing positionDefensive midfielder
Youth career
2000–2001VK Sint-Agatha-Berchem
2001–2003FC Ganshoren
2003–2004RSCUP Dieleghem Jette
2004–2005Brussels
2005–2007Anderlecht
2007–2012Lille
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps†(Gls)†
2011–2012Lille II17(1)
2012–2013Zulte Waregem35(3)
2013–2015VfL Wolfsburg17(2)
2013→ Zulte Waregem (loan)17(3)
Total86(9)
National team
2009Belgium U158(0)
2009–2010Belgium U1610(0)
2010–2011Belgium U179(0)
2011–2012Belgium U184(0)
2012Belgium U197(0)
2013–2014Belgium U2115(2)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.
† Appearances (Goals).

Bernard Malanda-Adje (28 August 1994 – 10 January 2015), nicknamed Junior Malanda, was a Belgian professional footballer who last played as a defensive midfielder for German club VfL Wolfsburg.[1]

He was a youth team player at Brussels, Anderlecht and Lille, going on to play in the reserve team of the latter. In 2012 he joined Zulte Waregem, and was a regular player as they finished runners-up of the 2012–13 Belgian Pro League. After that he was signed by Wolfsburg of the Bundesliga on a five-year contract, loaning him back for the first season before recalling him. He also represented Belgium up to under-21 level.

Malanda died on 10 January 2015, when a car in which he was travelling crashed in northern Germany, killing him instantly. The accident was attributed to excessive speed and wet conditions. Over 1,000 mourners attended his funeral at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart in his native Brussels.

Career

Early career

Formerly of the youth teams of the Belgian clubs RWDM Brussels FC and R.S.C. Anderlecht, Malanda joined French Ligue 1 club Lille OSC in 2007. He spent the 2010–11 season with their reserves in the Championnat de France amateur, the fourth tier of football in the country. He made his debut on 9 October 2011, playing the entirety of a 1–0 win away to Drancy.[2] Malanda made 17 league appearances that season, scoring a solitary goal, an 88th-minute equaliser in a 1–1 home draw against Poissy on 20 May 2012.[3]

Zulte Waregem

On 7 July 2012, 17-year-old Malanda returned to Belgium, signing a three-year deal with Zulte Waregem, with the option of an additional two.[4] He made his debut in the Belgian Pro League on 5 August, replacing Hernán Hinostroza in the 57th minute of a 3–1 win against Gent at the Regenboogstadion.[5] Malanda played 36 league matches as his team finished as runners-up to Anderlecht, scoring 3 goals, starting with an equaliser on 16 December as Zulte Waregem came from a goal down to defeat Genk in a home fixture.[6] He also scored the decisive goal on 21 April 2013, when his team defeated the eventual champions 2–1.[7]

On 1 August 2013, VfL Wolfsburg signed Malanda on a five-year deal, with him being loaned back to Zulte Waregem for the rest of the season.[8] Six days later, he made his debut in a European competition, featuring in a 0–3 home defeat against Dutch club PSV Eindhoven which saw Zulte Waregem eliminated from the UEFA Champions League.[9] Malanda played 8 matches in the club's UEFA Europa League campaign, and scored twice: opening a 1–1 draw against APOEL Nicosia in the play-offs,[10] and netting an 88th-minute winner in a 2–1 group stage triumph away to Wigan Athletic on 28 November.[11]

Wolfsburg

Malanda was recalled by Wolfsburg manager Dieter Hecking on 1 January 2014.[12] On the 25th, he was included in a Wolfsburg matchday squad for the first time, an unused substitute in a 1–3 home defeat against Hannover 96.[13] He made his debut on 8 February, replacing Christian Träsch for the last 8 minutes of a 3–0 home win against 1. FSV Mainz 05.[14]

Malanda scored his first Bundesliga goal in a 3–1 victory over Werder Bremen. On 25 March, he scored his first goal for the club, opening a 3–1 win at Werder Bremen in the second minute.[15] He added a second on 12 April, finishing off a 4–1 win against 1. FC Nürnberg.[16] However, an injury then put Malanda out for the remainder of the 2013–14 season.[17]

International career

While aged 17, Malanda captained the Belgium national under-19 football team.[4]

Playing style

Earlier in his career, Malanda played as a right back.[4] On his recall to Wolfsburg, Sporting Director Klaus Allofs said “After we signed him, we have been following his development closely. Over the last half year, he has convinced us with his continued strong performances. Therefore, we decided to take the option to bring him to VfL at this early stage. Despite his age, Junior Malanda is a player who has the necessary experience. Now, with VfL, he has the chance to develop his great potential.”[12]

Personal life

Malanda was from a Belgian family of Congolese descent, and was survived by a brother named Rudy.[18] He was a close friend of Kevin De Bruyne, a fellow Belgian midfielder and teammate at Wolfsburg.[18]

Death and reaction

Over 1,000 mourners attended Malanda's funeral at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart, Brussels

On 10 January 2015, at 3:25 pm local time, Malanda was travelling in the backseat of a Volkswagen Touareg on the A2 near Porta Westfalica[19] in northern Germany, to catch a flight to a training camp in South Africa.[18] Apparently without outside influence, the car cleared a guardrail on the side of the road and crashed into a tree. Malanda was catapulted from the back seat of the car. The police confirmed Malanda was not wearing his seat-belt at the time of the crash, resulting in him being thrown forward at the collision and being killed instantly.[20][21][22]

According to the police report, the crash was caused due to inappropriate speed for the very rainy weather, and an investigation into possible manslaughter was opened.[23] His agent Peter Smeets stated Malanda's car was caught speeding 21 times in the last 6 months, of which it was faster than 200 km/h in ten instances. He reported that Malanda was almost never driving the car himself.[24]

Notable footballers including Thibaut Courtois, Nicklas Bendtner, Benedikt Höwedes, Kevin De Bruyne, Mario Götze, and others, paid tribute to him on social media.[20][25] Fellow Belgian Romelu Lukaku dedicated his next goal to him after scoring for Everton in the FA Cup on 13 January.[26] Fellow Bundesliga club Bayern Munich observed a minute's silence for Malanda at their training camp in Qatar.[18]

Fans marched outside the Volkswagen Arena in tribute to Malanda. In Wolfsburg's first match since his death, against Bayern Munich on 30 January, a giant banner with Malanda's name and image was displayed by fans at the stadium.[27]

Malanda's funeral was held on 20 January at the Basilica of the Sacred Heart, Brussels. It drew over 1,000 mourners, among them Wolfsburg manager Dieter Hecking and Sporting Director Klaus Allofs as well as Marc Wilmots, manager of the Belgium national football team. Songs and dances from his family's ancestral Congo were performed.[28]

References

  1. ↑ "Junior Malanda". Espnfc.com. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
  2. ↑ "Drancy 0-1 Lille II". Soccerway. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
  3. ↑ "Lille II 1-1 Poissy". Soccerway. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 "Zulte Waregem neemt Junior Malanda (17) over van Lille" [Zulte Waregem take Junior Malanda (17) from Lille]. Het Laatste Nieuws (in Dutch). 7 July 2012. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
  5. ↑ "Zulte-Waregem 3-1 Gent". Soccerway. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
  6. ↑ "Zulte-Waregem 3-2 Genk". Soccerway. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
  7. ↑ "Zulte-Waregem 2-1 Anderlecht". Soccerway. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
  8. ↑ "Malanda revient à Zulte Waregem" [Malanda returns to Zulte Waregem]. L'Equipe (in French). 1 August 2013. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
  9. ↑ "PSV finish the job in style in Brussels". UEFA. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
  10. ↑ "Zulte Waregem 1-1 APOEL". UEFA. 22 August 2013. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
  11. ↑ Rose, Gary (28 November 2013). "Wigan 1-2 SV Zulte Waregem". BBC Sport. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 "Wolfsburg recall Malanda from loan". ESPN. 1 January 2014. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
  13. ↑ "Wolfsburg 1-3 Hannover". Goal.com. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
  14. ↑ "Wolfsburg win in style". Sky Sports. 8 February 2014. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
  15. ↑ "Wolfsburg keep up Europe hopes with away victory at Werder Bremen". Sky Sports. 25 March 2014. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
  16. ↑ "Wolfsburg bounce back". Sky Sports. 12 April 2014. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
  17. ↑ "Wolfsburg's Malanda to miss rest of season". Yahoo News. 16 April 2014. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 18.3 "Junior Malanda funeral draws over 1,000 mourners including Wolfsburg team-mate Kevin de Bruyne". Daily Mail. Press Association. 20 January 2015. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
  19. ↑ "Fußballprofi vom VfL Wolfsburg: Junior Malanda stirbt bei Autounfall'". Spiegel Online. 10 January 2015.
  20. ↑ 20.0 20.1 Lang, Jack (10 January 2015). "Junior Malanda dead at 20: Wolfsburg youngster 'suffers fatal injuries in car accident'". Daily Mirror.
  21. ↑ de Menezes, Jack (10 January 2015). "Junior Malanda dies: 20-year-old Wolfsburg midfielder 'killed in car accident' on German motorway". The Independent.
  22. ↑ "Polizei bestätigt: Malanda war auf seiner Todesfahrt nicht angeschnallt". FOCUS Online. 12 January 2015. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
  23. ↑ "Police: Junior Malanda not wearing seat belt during deadly crash". FOX Sports. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
  24. ↑ Meinhardt, Gunnar (13 January 2015). "Auto von Malanda in sechs Monaten 21 Mal geblitzt" [Malanda's car caught speeding 21 times in six months]. Die Welt (in German). Retrieved 23 February 2015.
  25. ↑ "Junior Malanda dies: 20-year-old Wolfsburg midfielder 'killed in car accident' on German motorway". The Independent. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
  26. ↑ "Romelu Lukaku dedicates his Everton goal against West Ham to Junior Malanda". Mail Online. Retrieved 15 January 2015.
  27. ↑ Begley, Emlyn (30 January 2015). "VfL Wolfsburg 4-1 Bayern Mun". BBC Sport. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
  28. ↑ "Mourners pay respects at funeral of Wolfsburg midfielder Junior Malanda". The Guardian. Associated Press. 20 January 2015. Retrieved 23 February 2015.

External links

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