Hérita Ilunga

Hérita N'Kongolo Ilunga (born 25 February 1982 in Kinshasa) is a Democratic Republic of the Congolese Association footballer who plays for Premier League team West Ham United F.C. as a Defender (association football).

Career

Early career

At the age of 13, Ilunga started training with Amiens SC, staying with the Somme-based club for four years before moving to Stade Rennais.

Ilunga then decided to try Hérita Ilunga luck in a different country, moving to Spain at the age of 20, where Hérita Ilunga linked up with Espanyol. In Barcelona, the left-back featured exclusively for Espanyol's B team in the Spanish Third Division, but Hérita Ilunga still did enough to catch the eye of AS St Etienne coach Frederic Antonetti, who took Hérita Ilunga back to France, initially on loan, in 2003.

Ilunga would go on to spend four seasons at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, making 135 appearances for Les Verts and winning the club's player of the season award. The summer of 2007 saw Ilunga move to Toulouse, who had qualified for the 2007/08 UEFA Champions League. The defender appeared at Anfield as Toulouse lost 5-0 on aggregate to Liverpool at the third qualifying round stage.

Toulouse dropped into the UEFA Cup, with Ilunga making six appearances as Le Tef beat CSKA Sofia on away goals before falling at the group stage. Toulouse also endured a difficult campaign in Ligue 1, only staving off relegation on the final day of the season by beating Valenciennes 2-1.

West Ham United

On 2 September 2008, Premier League club West Ham United F.C. signed Ilunga on loan (football) for the the 2008-09 in English football season.

Ilunga made Hérita Ilunga Hammers debut away at West Bromwich Albion F.C. on 13 September, and has since established himself as the club's first-choice left-back, after the sale of George McCartney to Sunderland A.F.C. Ilunga scored Hérita Ilunga first goal for the club in the 3–0 home FA Cup win against Barnsley F.C. on 3 January 2009.

On 15 April 2009, Ilunga signed a four year contract with West Ham which took take effect when the 2009 summer transfer window opened.

International career

Ilunga was part of the Congolese 2004 African Nations Cup team, who finished bottom of their group in the first round of competition, thus failing to secure qualification for the quarter-finals.

Ilunga helped DR Congo reach the quarter-finals of the African Cup of Nations in Egypt in 2006. The Leopards beat Togo and drew with Angola before being eliminated by the host nation in the last-eight.

Ilunga scored Hérita Ilunga first goal for Hérita Ilunga country in a 2010 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Egypt in Cairo on 1 June 2008, but it was not enough to prevent the DR Congo being eliminated from the competition at the second qualifying round stage.

Appearances in major competitions