The past 12 months have not gone according to plan for Yoane Wissa but now he is preparing for the biggest moment of his career. The 29-year-old is set to lead the line for the Democratic Republic of Congo when they face England in the round of 32 at the World Cup today.This is only the second time DR Congo have qualified for a World Cup. They competed in 1974 under the name Zaire but lost all three of their games. Wissa has become the African nation’s hero over the past two weeks. He has scored three times during this tournament, as many as he managed in 28 appearances for Newcastle United last season, including the equaliser in a 1-1 draw with Portugal.When DR Congo were struggling to break Uzbekistan down in their final group game, which they needed to win to progress, Wissa earned and converted a penalty to draw them level. Fiston Mayele gave DR Congo the lead before Wissa’s long-range strike in stoppage time sealed a famous victory. Afterwards, he paid a touching tribute to their fans.“It’s not easy in our country,” he told reporters. “There’s a war in East Congo. Every day, every time we wear this shirt, we think about them. That’s why tonight, what we show is just to say that guys, no matter what, we need to keep going. Because we want peace and for them, I just say ‘thank you’. Thank you because we came from far. We came from nothing to be here. Now we write our story with a black pen and we need to be proud.”Wissa celebrates beating Uzbekistan (Alex Slitz/Getty Images)Wissa’s status as one of his country’s most important players is the opposite to his situation at Newcastle. Wissa joined Eddie Howe’s side from Brentford on the final day of last summer’s transfer window for £55million. He only scored once in 19 league games and played just 519 minutes in total.Wissa struggled with a knee injury but even when he returned to full fitness, Howe preferred to use Anthony Gordon, a left winger, or 22-year-old Will Osula as the central striker instead of him. In April, The Athletic reported that Newcastle will explore selling Wissa this summer. Market conditions may now dictate he will stay, with the hope he will show far more in his second season at St James’ Park.Paraguay’s shock victory over Germany will be a reminder for England to not take DR Congo lightly. Wissa will relish the opportunity to remind everybody of his quality and draw a line under an eventful year. On the England bench will be his former Brentford team-mate Ivan Toney, who has indirectly impacted what happened over the past year.Wissa’s path to the top has not been without difficulty. In July 2021, he was the victim of an acid attack and underwent emergency eye surgery but made a full recovery.He signed for Brentford from French side Lorient in the August and quickly became a fan-favourite for the west London side. He started only 28 out of a possible 76 top-flight games in his first two seasons but after Toney received an eight-month ban in May 2023 for admitting to 232 breaches of the Football Association’s betting rules, Wissa started regularly and flourished.