Hérita Ilunga facts for kids
Ilunga in 2006
|
|||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Nkongolo Hérita Ilunga | ||
| Date of birth | 25 February 1982 | ||
| Place of birth | Kinshasa, Zaire | ||
| Height | 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Left-back | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1999–2002 | Rennes | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2002–2003 | Espanyol B | 19 | (1) |
| 2003–2007 | Saint-Étienne | 136 | (2) |
| 2007–2009 | Toulouse | 35 | (0) |
| 2008–2009 | → West Ham United (loan) | 35 | (0) |
| 2009–2012 | West Ham United | 31 | (0) |
| 2011–2012 | → Doncaster Rovers (loan) | 15 | (0) |
| 2012 | Doncaster Rovers | 4 | (0) |
| 2013 | Rennes | 5 | (0) |
| 2014 | Carquefou | 10 | (0) |
| 2014–2016 | Creteil | 64 | (0) |
| Total | 335 | (2) | |
| International career | |||
| 2004–2011 | DR Congo | 32 | (1) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Nkongolo Hérita Ilunga (born on February 25, 1982) is a former professional footballer from Congo. He played as a left-back, which is a defensive player on the left side of the field. Ilunga played for several clubs like Saint-Étienne and West Ham United. He also represented his country, DR Congo, in international matches.
Contents
Playing for Clubs
Starting Out
Hérita Ilunga began his football journey at a young age. When he was 13, he started training with Amiens SC in France. He stayed there for four years before moving to another French club, Stade Rennais.
At 20, Ilunga moved to Spain and joined Espanyol. He played for their B team, which is a team for younger or developing players. Even though he only played for the B team, his skills caught the eye of Saint-Étienne's coach, Frederic Antonetti.
In 2003, Ilunga returned to France to play for Saint-Étienne, first on loan. He spent four seasons with the team, playing 135 games. He even won the club's player of the season award!
Time at Toulouse
In the summer of 2007, Ilunga joined Toulouse. This team had qualified for the 2007–08 UEFA Champions League, a big European competition. Ilunga played in a match against Liverpool at Anfield, but Toulouse lost.
Toulouse then played in the UEFA Cup, another European competition. Ilunga played in six matches as his team won against CSKA Sofia. However, they were later knocked out in the group stage. The team also had a tough time in their league, Ligue 1, but managed to avoid being moved down to a lower division.
The next season, Ilunga didn't play as much. He was linked with clubs like Mallorca and Newcastle, and then an English team, West Ham United, became interested.
Playing for West Ham United
On September 2, 2008, Premier League club West Ham United signed Ilunga on a loan deal. This meant he would play for them for the 2008–09 season.
Ilunga made his first appearance for West Ham on September 13. He quickly became the team's main left-back. Fans even voted him player of the month in October! He scored his first goal for the club in an FA Cup game on January 3, 2009.
On April 15, 2009, Ilunga agreed to join West Ham permanently. He signed a four-year contract. His first game as a permanent player was on August 15, 2009. He had an injury during that game but returned to play later.
In October 2009, Ilunga was involved in an incident with another player, Kenwyne Jones. Jones pushed Ilunga and was sent off the field. Ilunga played 17 games for West Ham during the 2009–10 season. However, he got injured in February 2010 and didn't play for the rest of that season.
When a new manager, Sam Allardyce, joined West Ham, Ilunga played in the first five games of the 2011–12 season. But then he left to join Doncaster Rovers on loan.
On January 27, 2012, Ilunga and West Ham agreed to end his contract. He played 73 games for West Ham and scored three goals.
Doncaster Rovers and Later Clubs
On October 4, 2011, Ilunga joined Doncaster Rovers on a three-month loan. He made his first appearance for them on October 14. He later signed another contract with Doncaster in March 2012. However, his team finished last in their league and was moved down to a lower division. Ilunga left the club in June 2012.
After leaving Doncaster, Ilunga returned to France. On January 23, 2013, he signed with Rennes, the team where he started his youth career. He even reunited with his old coach, Frederic Antonetti. Ilunga played his first game in Ligue 1 since 2008. Unfortunately, he suffered a thigh injury in March 2013.
After Rennes, Ilunga played for Carquefou and then Creteil. He retired from playing football in 2016. In September 2017, he was appointed to a special committee for training and development at the CAF.
Playing for His Country
Ilunga was an important part of the DR Congo national football team. He played in the 2004 African Nations Cup. His team finished last in their group and did not move on to the next round.
He also helped DR Congo reach the quarter-finals of the African Cup of Nations in Egypt in 2006. His team beat Togo and tied with Angola. They were later knocked out by the host country, Egypt.
Ilunga scored his first goal for DR Congo on June 1, 2008, in a World Cup qualifier against Egypt. Even though he scored, DR Congo was eliminated from the competition.
International Goals
| # | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 1 June 2008 | Cairo International Stadium, Cairo |  Egypt |
1–0 | 1–2 | 2010 World Cup qualifier |
Appearances in Major Competitions
| Year | Competition | Category | Appearances | Goals | Team Record | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Start | Sub | |||||
| 2004–05 | 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification | Senior | 5 | 0 | 0 | Did not Qualify |
| 2008 | 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification | Senior | 4 | 0 | 0 | Did not Qualify |
See also
In Spanish: Hérita Ilunga para niños
