When Premier League fans see the name Chancel Mbemba, their first memory might be something to do with the tuxedo he wore when arriving for his first Newcastle United appearance at St James’ Park. More than a decade on, though, the centre-back has developed into one of the most important players in the Democratic Republic of Congo national team as the African nation reached a first World Cup in more than half a century.
“I have seen that picture, pretending I’m James Bond, but that wasn’t the reason why I did it,” Mbemba, who joined Newcastle a fortnight before his 21st birthday, told Mirror Football in 2015. “I did it because the manager said, 'Look sharp on match days' — so I did!”
Even at that tender age, Mbemba showed maturity, sending 10 per cent of his earnings back home to help those in need of medical treatment. He was still a rising star back then but is now one of the elder statesmen of his national team and their most-capped player with more than a century of appearances.
The Democratic Republic of Congo was known as Zaire the last time the country qualified for a World Cup, losing all three group games in 1974. Since then, the national team has turned to diaspora talents - Newcastle striker Yoane Wissa and Sunderland midfielder Noah Sadiki were born in France and Belgium respectively - but having a Congolese-born player wearing the armband has been its own help.
