Paul-José M'Poku Ebunge (born 19 April 1992) is a Congolese professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a winger or as an

attacking midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

for

Liga I Liga I (; ''First League''), also spelled as Liga 1 and officially known as SuperLiga for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Romania and the highest level of the Romanian football league system. Contested by 1 ...

club

UTA Arad Asociația Fotbal Club UTA Arad (), commonly known as UTA Arad or simply UTA (''Uzina Textilă Arad''; ), is a Romanian professional football club based in the city of Arad, Arad County that competes in the Liga I. The team was founded in 1945 ...

Club career

Tottenham Hotspur

Born in

Kinshasa Kinshasa (; ; ), formerly named Léopoldville from 1881–1966 (), is the Capital city, capital and Cities of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, largest city of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Kinshasa is one of the world's fastest-grow ...

Zaire Zaire, officially the Republic of Zaire, was the name of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1971 to 18 May 1997. Located in Central Africa, it was, by area, the third-largest country in Africa after Sudan and Algeria, and the 11th-la ...

, M'Poku moved to

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

as a child. Prior to joining Tottenham Hotspur in June 2008, he had played for Belgian club

Standard Liège Royal Standard de Liège, commonly referred to as Standard Liège ( ; ; ) or simply Standard in Belgium, is a Belgian professional football club based in the city of Liège. They are one of the most successful clubs in Belgium, having won t ...

and signed his first professional contract on 24 April 2009. Representing Tottenham Hotspur in the

Premier Academy League The Premier Academy League (sometimes abbreviated as FAPAL) was the top level of youth football in England before it was to be replaced by a new league proposed by the Elite Player Performance Plan in 2012, which was accepted by the 72 member c ...

, he was a prolific scorer and was included in the squad for the FA Cup replay against

Bolton Wanderers Bolton Wanderers Football Club ( ) is a professional association football, football club based in Horwich, Metropolitan Borough of Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in EFL League One, League One, the third level of the Englis ...

on 26 February 2010.

Loan to Leyton Orient

On 24 September 2010, M'Poku moved to

Leyton Orient Leyton Orient Football Club, commonly referred to as Orient, is a professional association football club based in Leyton, Waltham Forest, London, England. The team compete in EFL League One, the third level of the English football league system. ...

on a month's loan, to last until 23 October. He made his professional debut coming on as a substitute for Orient against

Walsall Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located ...

on 28 September. After impressing Orient manager

Russell Slade Russell Mark Slade (born 10 October 1960) is an English former professional football manager and coach. Having had an extended career at reserve team level, Slade entered professional sports coaching with Notts County in 1993. He briefly took ...

, M'Poku's loan was extended until 8 January 2011. He scored his first goal in English football with Orient's third in the 8–2 thrashing of

Droylsden Droylsden is a town in Tameside, Greater Manchester, England, east of Manchester and west of Ashton-under-Lyne, with a population at the 2011 Census of 22,689. Within the boundaries of the historic county of Lancashire, in the mid-19th cen ...

in the FA Cup on 7 December. His loan was subsequently extended until the end of the season. He scored two league goals for Orient: their third in the 4–2 win over

Colchester United Colchester United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Colchester, Essex, England. The team competes in , the fourth level of the English football league system. Founded in 1937, the club spent its ea ...

on 3 January, and a late 25-yard winner against

Oldham Athletic Oldham Athletic Association Football Club is a professional association football club in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. As of the 2025–26 EFL League Two, 2025–26 season, the team competes in EFL League Two, the fourth level of the Eng ...

on 12 March. He made 35 appearances for Orient in all competitions.

Standard Liège

Without making a first team appearance at Tottenham Hotspur, he was transferred back to Standard Liège in July 2011 for an undisclosed fee, signing a four-year contract. M’Poku remained out of the first team at the start of the 2011–12 season until on 28 August 2011, he made his first team appearance as an un-used substitute, in a 1–1 draw against

Beerschot Koninklijke Beerschot Voetbalclub Antwerpen (), or simply Beerschot, is a Belgian professional football club located in Antwerp, that competes in the top tier Pro League after promotion from second tier in 2023–24 season. In 2013, KFCO Wil ...

. M’Poku then made his Standard Liege debut, where he came on as a substitute for Geoffrey Mujangi Bia in the last minutes, in a 2–1 win over

Club Brugge (), known simply as Club Brugge (in English also: ''Club Bruges''), is a Belgian professional football club based in Bruges, Belgium. It was founded in 1891 and its home ground is the Jan Breydel Stadium, which has a capacity of 29,042. They pl ...

on 6 November 2011. In his first season at Standard Liege, M’Poku was featured less in the first team under the management of

José Riga José Riga (born 30 July 1957) is a Belgian football manager and former player. He had a fifteen-year playing career as a midfielder, beginning in 1974 when he joined C.S. Visé. He remained with the club for eleven years, before joining fellow ...

., as he made eight appearances for the club. The 2012–13 season saw M’Poku get more playing time at the club under the new management of

Mircea Rednic Mircea Rednic (born 9 April 1962) is a Romanian professional football coach and former player who played as a defender, who is currently the head coach of Belgian Pro League club Standard Liège. Playing career Corvinul Hunedoara Rednic, ni ...

. M'Poku scored his first goal on 23 November 2012 in a 3–0 win against Lierse. M’Poku then provided a double assist, in a 3–0 win over Beerschot on 27 December 2012. In the

Play-Offs The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

, M’Poku went to score five more goals against Zulte Waregem (scored against them in another encounter),

Genk Genk () is a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality and City status in Belgium, city located in the Belgian Provinces of Belgium, province of Limburg (Belgium), Limburg near Hasselt. The municipality comprises only the town of Genk itself. It ...

Lokeren Lokeren () is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality located in the Belgian Provinces of Belgium, province of East Flanders, and belongs to the Waasland, also called ''Land van Waas'', of which it is the second ...

and Club Brugge despite suffering from a knee injury, but managed to recover from it. M’Poku then scored a hat-trick in a 7–0 win over

Gent Gent is a shortened form of the word gentleman. It may also refer to: * Ghent ( Dutch: Gent), a Belgian city ** K.A.A. Gent, a football club from Ghent ** K.R.C. Gent, a football club from Ghent ** Gent RFC, a rugby club in Ghent ** .gent, ...

on 26 May 2013 to help the club qualify for the

Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

next season. M’Poku finished the 2012–13 season, making thirty one appearance and scoring nine times in all competitions. The 2013–14 season saw M’Poku being linked with a move to rivals,

Anderlecht Anderlecht (; ) is one of the List of municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located in the south-western part of the region, it is bordered by the City of Brussels, Forest, B ...

, though the club's owner,

Roland Duchâtelet Roland Duchâtelet (; born 14 November 1946) is a Belgian businessman and politician. He is owner of various football clubs. He is the founder of the social-liberal political party Vivant in Belgium. Business In 1990, he became involved in mi ...

, said there were no offers made for M’Poku from Anderlecht. Despite this, M’Poku remained at the club. M’Poku started the 2013–14 season well when he scored his first goals of the season, in a 3–1 win over KR in the first leg of second round of Europa League and scored his first league goal of the season, in a 2–0 win over Genk on 11 August 2013. M’Poku scored in the second leg of the Europa League Qualification Round, in a 3–0 win over

Minsk Minsk (, ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach (Berezina), Svislach and the now subterranean Nyamiha, Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the administra ...

and scored his second league goal, in a 2–0 win over

Kortrijk Kortrijk ( , ; or ''Kortrik''; ), sometimes known in English as Courtrai or Courtray ( ), is a Belgian City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region, Flemish Provinces of Belgium, province of We ...

. By the end of 2013, M’Poku scored against

Bruxelles Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a region of Belgium comprising 19 municipalities, including the City of Brussels, which is the capital ...

Cercle Brugge Cercle Brugge Koninklijke Sportvereniging () is a Belgian professional football club based in Bruges. They compete in the Belgian Pro League, the top flight of Belgian football. Their matricule number is 12. The club plays home games at the 29 ...

, Red Bull Salzburg, Lierse and Genk. M’Poku later added three goals in the 2013–14 season against Cercle Brugge, Zulte Waregem and Lokeren. At the end of the 2013–14 season, which saw Standard Liege failing to win the league, M’Poku made forty–nine appearances and scored twelve times. He was also nominated for the Ebony Shoes, but lost out to Thorgan Hazard. Despite this, M’Poku was rewarded with a new contract with the club, keeping him until 2018. In the 2014–15 season, M’Poku continued to attract interests around Europe and Qatar, but remained at the club. M’Poku started the season well when he scored in the second leg of the third round of Champions League, in a 2–1 win over Panathinaikos and was awarded Man of the Match by Sporza. Then on 21 September 2014, M’Poku scored his first league goal of the season and set up a goal, in a 2–0 win over

Waasland-Beveren Sportkring Beveren (SK Beveren) is a Belgian professional association football club based in Beveren, East Flanders. The club is affiliated with the founded number 4068 and has yellow and blue as its colours. The team was founded in 1936 in H ...

. He also four more goals by November against Zulte Waregem,

Mechelen Mechelen (; ; historically known as ''Mechlin'' in EnglishMechelen has been known in English as ''Mechlin'', from where the adjective ''Mechlinian'' is derived. This name may still be used, especially in a traditional or historical context. T ...

, regaining Europa League Champions

Sevilla Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula. Seville ...

and Genk. However, M’Poku suffered injuries by the end of 2014. In the January transfer window, M’Poku continued to attract interests and was on a verge of joining Qatar side Al-Arabi and expected to be loaned out to a European club. However, the move suffered a huge setback over his fitness and the move was eventually cancelled. After the move was broken down, M’Poku was then linked with a move to

Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany and the highest level of the German football league system. The Bundesliga comprises 18 teams ...

side

Mainz 05 1. Fußball- und Sport-Verein Mainz 05 e. V., usually shortened to 1. FSV Mainz 05 or simply Mainz 05 (), is a German professional sports club, founded in 1905 and based in Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate. Mainz 05 play in the Bundesliga, the top tie ...

and

Serie A The Serie A (), officially known as Serie A Enilive in Italy and Serie A Made in Italy abroad for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Italy and the highest tier of the Italian football league system. Establish ...

side

Inter Milan Football Club Internazionale Milano, commonly referred to as Internazionale () or simply Inter, and colloquially known as Inter Milan in English-speaking countries, is an Italian professional Association football, football List of football ...

Loan to Cagliari

On 1 February 2015, M'Poku signed for

Cagliari Cagliari (, , ; ; ; Latin: ''Caralis'') is an Comune, Italian municipality and the capital and largest city of the island of Sardinia, an Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Italy. It has about 146,62 ...

on loan until the end of the season. Upon joining the club, M’Poku revealed that then-Manager

Gianfranco Zola Gianfranco Zola (; born 5 July 1966) is an Italian football executive, Manager (association football), manager, and former Association football, footballer who played predominantly as a Forward (association football), forward. He is currently v ...

persuaded him to join the club. M’Poku made his Cagliari debut, where he came on as a substitute for Alejandro González in the 61st minute, and scored his first goal for the club, in a 2–1 loss against

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: People, characters, figures, names * Roma or Romani people, an ethnic group living mostly in Europe and the Americas. * Roma called Roy, ancient Egyptian High Priest of Amun * Roma (footballer, born 1979), born ''Paul ...

on 8 February 2015. Two weeks later, on 23 February 2015, M’Poku made his first start, playing 90 minutes, in a 2–1 loss against

. M’Poku scored his second Cagliari goal and set up one of the goals, in a 4–0 win over

Parma Parma (; ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, Giuseppe Verdi, music, art, prosciutto (ham), Parmesan, cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,986 inhabitants as of 2025, ...

on 4 May 2015. In the last game of the season, M’Poku scored his third Cagliari goal and set up one of the goals, in a 4–3 win over

Udinese Udinese Calcio (; "Udinese Football") is a professional football club based in Udine, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy. The team currently competes in the Serie A, the first tier of Italian football. It was founded on 30 November 1896 as a sport ...

. M’Poku made sixteen appearances and scoring three times, but was unable to help the club survive relegation to Serie B next season.

Chievo

After being unregistered by Standard Liege ahead of the new season, it was announced on 13 July 2015, M’Poku was loaned out to another Italian club by joining

Chievo Chievo (4,500 inhabitants) is a frazione of Verona located to the west of the city, around from the historic city centre, on the shores of the river Adige. It is best known for its football team, A.C. ChievoVerona. History The name came from t ...

on a season-loan deal for the 2015–16 season. M’Poku made his Chievo debut in the opening game of the season, where he made his first start and played 45 minutes before being substituted, in a 3–1 win over

Empoli Empoli () is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Florence, Tuscany, Italy, about southwest of Florence, to the south of the Arno River, Arno in a plain formed by the river. The plain has been usable for agriculture since Ancient Ro ...

. However, in a 1–0 loss against Inter Milan on 23 September 2015, M’Poku suffered an injury after colliding with Inter's

Felipe Melo Felipe Melo de Carvalho (born 26 June 1983), known as Felipe Melo, is a Brazilian former professional association football, footballer who played as a defensive midfielder or centre-back. He began his career with Brazilian teams Clube de Rega ...

and was substituted after playing 14 minutes. M’Poku then made his return to the first team on 28 October 2015, where he came on as a substitute in the second half, in a 1–0 loss against

A.C. Milan (), commonly referred to as Milan or AC Milan () mainly outside of Italy, is an Italian professional Football club (association football), football club based in Milan, Lombardy. Founded in 1899, the club competes in the Serie A, the top tie ...

. However, M’Poku struggled to score goal, like he did at Cagliari, as he made twenty appearances and scoring none, as he spent most of the season on the substitute bench. After a loan spell at Chievo, M’Poku joined the club on a permanent basis, signing a three–year contract on 31 May 2016.

Loan to Panathinaikos

On 31 August 2016, M'Poku signed a year long-term loan with Greek giants Panathinaikos on loan from Chievo, for an undisclosed fee. On 30 October he scored his first goal with the club in a 2–0 home

League League or The League may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Leagues'' (band), an American rock band * ''The League'', an American sitcom broadcast on FX and FXX about fantasy football * ''League of Legends'', a 2009 multiplayer online battle a ...

game against Iraklis.

Return to Standard Liège

On 3 July 2017, M’Poku decided to leave Panathinaikos as he agreed to return to his former club of Standard Liege. According to various sources, the Belgian Club moved to sign the Congolese winger, by putting on the table a bid of €1.5 million. M’Poku under-went medical examinations before signing a five-year contract. On 17 March 2018 he played as Standard Liege beat

1–0 in extra time to win the 2018 Belgian Cup Final and qualify for the

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

Al-Wahda

On 21 January 2020, Al Wahda signed M'Poku from

Incheon United

On 12 December 2022, M'Poku has joined

Incheon United FC Incheon United FC () is a South Korean professional association football, football club based in Incheon that competes in the K League 2, the second tier of South Korean football league system, South Korean football. Founded in 2003, the club is ...

of South Korean

K League 1 The K League 1 () is a professional association football league in South Korea and the highest level of the South Korean football league system. The league is contested by twelve clubs. It is one of the most successful leagues in the Asian Foo ...

UTA Arad

In 17 February 2025, M'Poku signed a contract with Romanian

club

FC UTA Arad Asociația Fotbal Club UTA Arad (), commonly known as UTA Arad or simply UTA (''Uzina Textilă Arad''; ), is a Romanian professional Association football, football football team, club based in the city of Arad, Romania, Arad, Arad County that comp ...

International career

M'Poku represented Belgium at youth level, such as, Belgium U15, Belgium U16, Belgium U17, Belgium U18, Belgium U19, and Belgium U21. On 19 February 2015, M'Poku announced his decision to play for

DR Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), also known as the DR Congo, Congo-Kinshasa, or simply the Congo (the last ambiguously also referring to the neighbouring Republic of the Congo), is a country in Central Africa. By land area, it is t ...

despite being monitored by the senior team. M'Poku scored on his DR Congo debut in the friendly match on 28 March 2015, in a 2–1 loss against

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

. In January 2017 M'poku was selected in DR Congo's final squad for the

2017 Africa Cup of Nations The 2017 Africa Cup of Nations (abbreviated as AFCON 2017 or CAN 2017), known as the Total 2017 Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, was the 31st edition of the Africa Cup of Nations, the biennial international men's football champions ...

in Gabon.

Personal life

Though he was linked with a move to Anderlecht, M’Poku stated he expressed his dislike towards the club on his Twitter account. M'Poku's brother

Albert Sambi Lokonga Albert-Mboyo Sambi Lokonga (born 22 October 1999) is a Belgian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a central midfielder for La Liga club Sevilla FC, Sevilla, on loan from Arsenal F.C., Arsenal, and the Belgium national fo ...

is also a professional footballer.

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Scores and results list Congo DR's goal tally first'' , - , align=center, 1. , , 28 March 2015 , , Khalid Bin Mohammed Stadium,

Sharjah Sharjah (; ', Gulf Arabic: ''aš-Šārja'') is the List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, third-most populous city in the United Arab Emirates, after Dubai and Abu Dhabi. It is the capital of the Emirate of Sharjah and forms part of the D ...

, United Arab Emirates , , , , , , , , Friendly , - , align=center, 2. , , rowspan="2", 5 June 2016 , , rowspan="2", Rabemananjara Stadium,

Mahajanga Mahajangā (French: Majunga) is a city and an administrative district on the northwest coast of Madagascar. The city of Mahajanga (Mahajanga I) is the capital of the Boeny Region. The district (identical to the city) had a population of 258,068 ...

, Madagascar , , rowspan="2", , , align=center, 2–0 , , rowspan="2" align=center, 6–1 , , rowspan="2",

2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification The 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualification matches were organized by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to decide the participating teams of the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations, the 31st edition of the international men's football champions ...

, - , align=center, 3. , , , - , align=center, 4. , , 24 January 2017 , , Stade de Port-Gentil,

Port-Gentil Port-Gentil () or Mandji is the second-largest city of Gabon, and it is a leading seaport. It is the center of Gabon's petroleum and timber industries. The city is located on a delta island in the Ogooue delta. Nearby Cape Lopez is Gabon's weste ...

, Gabon , , , , , , , ,

, - , align=center, 5. , , 29 January 2017 , , Stade d'Oyem,

Oyem Oyem is the capital of Woleu-Ntem province in northern Gabon, lying on the N2 road and the River Ntem. Geography The town lies on a plateau at an elevation of about . It is the administrative and transport center for the surrounding agricultur ...

, Gabon , , , , , , , , 2017 Africa Cup of Nations , - , align=center, 6. , , 5 September 2017 , ,

Stade des Martyrs The Pentacost Martyrs Stadium (French language, French: ''Stade des Martyrs de la Pentecôte'') (formerly known as Stade Kamanyola), or commonly referred to as the Stade des Martyrs, is a List of national stadiums, national multi-purpose stadium ...

, DR Congo , , , , , , , ,

2018 FIFA World Cup qualification The 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification process was a series of tournaments organised by the six FIFA FIFA#Structure, confederations to decide 31 of the 32 teams which would play in the 2018 FIFA World Cup, with Russia national football team, Rus ...

Honours

Standard Liège *

Belgian Cup The Belgian Cup (; ; ) is the main knockout football competition in Belgium, run by the Royal Belgian FA. The competition started in 1908 with provincial selections as the "Belgian Provinces Cup". Starting from 1912 only actual clubs were allowed ...

: 2017–18 *

Belgian Super Cup The Belgian Super Cup ( ; ; ), ''Pro League Supercup'', is a Belgian club competition played as a single match between the Belgian Pro League champions (also received the Super Cup host) and the Belgian Cup winners. If both teams are the same, ...

runner-up:

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

References

External links