 Maghoma withBirmingham City in 2016 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Jacques Ilonda Maghoma[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (1987-10-23)23 October 1987 (age 38)[2] | ||
| Place of birth | Lubumbashi, Zaire | ||
| Height | 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)[3] | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2003–2009 | Tottenham Hotspur | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2009–2013 | Burton Albion | 155 | (26) |
| 2013–2015 | Sheffield Wednesday | 57 | (2) |
| 2015–2020 | Birmingham City | 168 | (20) |
| 2020–2021 | East Bengal | 19 | (3) |
| 2021 | Spalding United | 0 | (0) |
| 2021–2022 | Hemel Hempstead Town | 4 | (0) |
| Total | 403 | (51) | |
| International career | |||
| 2010 | DR Congo B | 1 | (1) |
| 2010–2019 | DR Congo | 25 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Jacques Ilonda Maghoma (born 23 October 1987) is a Congolese former professionalfootballer who made 380 appearances in theFootball League between 2009 and 2020 and 25 for theDR Congo national team between 2010 and 2019.
Amidfielder, Maghoma began his career withTottenham Hotspur, and has also played forSheffield Wednesday andBurton Albion, where he was the player of the season for 2012–13. He spent five seasons withBirmingham City, and was their player of the year for 2017–18, before spending a season withEast Bengal of theIndian Super League. After a few matches in Englishnon-league football, Maghoma announced his retirement in October 2022.
Internationally, Maghoma was firstcapped for theDR Congo in 2010.
Born inLubumbashi, Zaire,[2] Maghoma began his career atTottenham Hotspur, joining the youthacademy in 2003. He progressed to the reserve side, making numerous appearances, although he suffered a number of injuries during his time at the club. He went on trial toLeeds United, but was not offered a permanent deal.[4] Maghoma was also linked with a move toHamburg in the summer, but the move never happened.[5]
After five years at the academy, Maghoma was released by Tottenham managerHarry Redknapp in June 2009.[6]
After training with bothHereford United andBurton Albion, Maghoma decided to join the latter, newly promoted toLeague Two, on a two-year contract.[7] ManagerPaul Peschisolido was impressed by his displays in the pre-season friendly matches,[8] and Maghoma was in the starting eleven for both his and his team'sFootball League debut, on 8 August 2009 in a 3–1 defeat away toShrewsbury Town.[9] His first Burton goal came in a 2–0 home win againstBarnet on 19 October.[10] Having established himself in the team in the second half of the season,[11] he scored his second goal in a 1–0 home win againstPort Vale on 6 February 2010, and his third in a 3–2 loss away toMorecambe ten days later.[12] A knee injury suffered in mid-March flared up again in April, leaving the player facing exploratory surgery, and he missed much of the last two months of the season.[13] He finished the campaign with 4 goals from 38 appearances in all competitions.[12]
Minor knocks did not prevent Maghoma beginning Burton's season in the matchday squad, albeit on the bench.[14][15] After turning down an international call-up to theDR Congo team to concentrate on his club career – particularly on his defensive duties[16] – Maghoma scored his first goal of the season in a 1–1 draw withCrewe Alexandra on 18 September. He also scored as Burton beatChesterfield 3–1 in theFA Cup second round,[15] and again two weeks later in a 3–1 win overSouthend United, after which Peschisolido praised his "superb" performance but wanted him to produce similar standards every week.[17] In the penultimate match of the season, away to Southend, Maghoma received the firstred card of his career for reacting verbally to provocation from home fans afterScott Malone's goal that ensured Burton's survival in League Two. Malone suggested that a professional player "needs to handle it a little bit better".[18] With 43 league appearances, and rated one of the club's most consistent outfield players, Maghoma was runner-up to goalkeeperAdam Legzdins in the Supporters' Player of the Year poll.[19] His delay in accepting the club's offer of a new contract caused Peschisolido to resign himself to the player leaving,[20] but Maghoma rejected offers from abroad in favour of two more years with Burton, and intended to make every effort to improve his own performance and to go for the League Two title.[21]
After serving a suspension in the opening game of the season,[22] Maghoma returned to action in theLeague Cup first round away toBurnley. He equalised in the last few minutes to take the game intoextra time, but Burton went on to lose 6–3.[23] A victory against Crewe Alexandra meant that his absence with an ankle knock was not crucial, and he returned to score his first goal of the season as Burton beatSwindon Town 2–0.[24][25] However, he only worsened the problem, and a scan confirmed ligament damage likely to keep him out for six weeks;[26] he was back in four.[25] He missed another month with a hamstring injury sustained in February, but apart from that was a regular in the starting eleven for the remainder of the season, and scored three times in the last month of the campaign to take his total to five from 38 appearances in all competitions.[25][27]
Maghoma began the 2012–13 season with a goal and an assist in a 6–2 win overAFC Wimbledon.[28] He also "thundered in a swerving 30-yard effort" as Burton eliminatedChampionship sideLeicester City from theLeague Cup on their own ground by four goals to two,[29] and scored two goals and set up another forCalvin Zola in a 4–0 win overOxford United.[30] Four goals in three consecutive games – two againstFleetwood Town,[31] and one each againstExeter City[32] and Morecambe[33] – earned Maghoma the League Two Player of the Month award for February 2013.[34] He scored both goals in a 2–0 defeat ofWycombe Wanderers in April that took Burton into the automatic promotion positions,[35] but they finished fourth, so went into theplay-offs againstBradford City. Burton won the first leg 3–2, and Maghoma opened the scoring in the second from the penalty spot, but Bradford City won 5–4 on aggregate, so Burton stayed in League Two.[36]
He was the club's top scorer for the season, with 18 goals from 50 appearances,[37] became the first Burton Albion player to be named in thePFA League Two Team of the Year,[38] placed sixth in the poll of League Two managers to choose the division's player of the year,[39] received the club's Players' Player of the Season award, and was runner-up toLee Bell as Supporters' Player of the Season.[40] With his contract due to expire and interest reported from Championship clubs, it became clear that Maghoma would be leaving.[41] ManagerGary Rowett said he and his ability to "[come] up with a little bit of magic more often than not" would be a big loss.[42]
Maghoma signed a two-year contract with Championship clubSheffield Wednesday in June 2013.[43] He made an eventful debut on the opening day of the 2013–14 season against newly relegatedQueens Park Rangers. Coming into the match as a first-half substitute forJoe Mattock, Maghoma was booked fordiving when the victim of what QPR's assistant manager agreed was a foul in the penalty area by the already-bookedJoey Barton, and also shot against the post, as Sheffield Wednesday lost 2–1.[44] He had missed some of pre-season training because of injury, and was not a regular in the team for the first few months of the season,[45] but had a run in the starting eleven from late November, and scored his first goal in a 2–1 loss against Bournemouth.[46][47] He also scored in a 4–1 win overMacclesfield Town in the FA Cup third round, and in a 2–0 win overHuddersfield Town in February 2014.[48] His season effectively ended in March, when he was fouled byWigan Athletic's goalkeeper and suffered knee damage that kept him out until the final match,[49] in which he had ten minutes as a substitute. He finished with three goals from 30 appearances in all competitions, and hoped to make a greater impact in the season to come.[48][50]
Maghoma started the 2014–15 season with an assist forGiles Coke's shot from distance as Wednesday beatBrighton & Hove Albion 1–0; Coke's goal was voted Wednesday's Goal of 2014.[51] He scored his first goal of the season in a 3–0 League Cup win overNotts County.[52] But after initially holding down the left-wing position onceMichail Antonio left the club, he lost his place in the face of competition fromChris Maguire and new arrivalsRoyston Drenthe andHallam Hope,[53] and it took a "kick up the backside" from managerStuart Gray to improve his performance in training and return him to the starting eleven.[54] In February 2015, he provided the assists for all three Wednesday goals in a win away toMillwall,[55] and he finished the season with 36 appearances, which included 28 league starts.[46] Although he had hoped to earn a new contract with Wednesday,[56] he was released at the end of the season.[57]
Maghoma linked up again with former manager Gary Rowett at Championship clubBirmingham City in June 2015, when he signed a two-year contract with the option of a further year.[58] An unused substitute on the opening day of the season, he started the League Cup visit toBristol Rovers three days later and scored the opening goal in a 2–1 win.[59] His first league goal was the second of a 2–0 win atMilton Keynes Dons; having come on soon after half-time, he ran on toClayton Donaldson's through pass and slid the ball past the goalkeeper.[60] According to theBirmingham Mail's reporter, he made a significant impact on the game, "fast, direct and full of running – and took his goal with great composure".[61] He became a regular in the team, either as a substitute or, especially after the transfer ofDemarai Gray to Leicester City, in the starting eleven, and scored 6 goals from 44 appearances in all competitions. At the end of the season he agreed a contract extension to 2018, plus an option in the club's favour of another year.[59][62]
Speaking in February 2016, Rowett said about Maghoma that "he's strong, he's quick, and he's got great balance. He can beat players, he can score goals, he can tackle, and he can defend", but that his ability meant that "he should be scoring ten goals a season and setting more goals up".[63] He scored at Leeds United in Birmingham's first win of the 2016–17 season,[64] and crossed forDavid Davis's goal againstNorwich City[65] andLukas Jutkiewicz's late winner against Sheffield Wednesday.[66] He was a regular starter for the first three months of the season,[46] but played little during the next two because of a knee problem and a sickness virus.[67] Under new managerGianfranco Zola, Maghoma made three starts, in the second of which his decisively taken goal sparked a comeback from 2–0 down to draw withBarnsley,[68] before spending January at theAfrica Cup of Nations. He returned with a knee injury,[69] but played rarely even when fit; Zola preferred not to use wingers.[70]Harry Redknapp replaced Zola with at least six points needed from three matches to avoid relegation; Maghoma started all three.[71] He worked hard in a losing cause againstAston Villa,[70] won the corner that led to the first goal and won the penalty with which Birmingham beat Huddersfield Town 2–0,[72] and no Birmingham player made more successful tackles in the win atBristol City that kept them in the division.[71]
Maghoma won Birmingham's Player of the Year and Players' Player of the Year awards for2017–18.[73]
After five years with the club, he was released when his contract expired at the end of the2019–20 season.[74]
Maghoma signed a one-year contract withIndian Super League clubEast Bengal on 19 October 2020.[75] He scored his first goals for the club in a 3-2 loss toHyderabad FC, and added another in a 3-1 win againstOdisha FC.
Northern Premier League Eastern Division clubSpalding United, managed by former DR Congo internationalGabriel Zakuani, announced the arrival of Maghoma in June 2021.[76] However, it was reported locally that he was training with the club to regain fitness,[77] and he made no competitive appearance for them.[78]
In October 2021, Maghoma signed forNational League South clubHemel Hempstead Town.[79] He made his debut on 6 November as a second-half substitute in a 2–2 draw away toDorking Wanderers, and made five more appearances.[46][80]
Maghoma announced his retirement from football in October 2022.[81]
Maghoma was called into the DR Congo squad for some post-season friendlies in May 2010 in Austria and Switzerland.[82] He made his debut for his country's B team againstSaudi Arabia's B team on 20 May, and scored.[83] He made his senior debut during the same set of matches, as a second-half substitute, also against Saudi Arabia,[84] but did not appear again until March 2015, in a friendly defeat againstIraq.[85][86] He made his first competitive appearance for his country as a half-time substitute in theWorld Cup qualifier away toBurundi, which DR Congo won 3–2, and started the return match three days later, in which a 2–2 daw was enough for DR Congo to progress to thequalification group stage.[87][88]
Maghoma's younger brothers,Christian andParis, also became professional footballers.[89][90]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Burton Albion | 2009–10[12] | League Two | 35 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1[c] | 0 | 38 | 4 |
| 2010–11[15] | League Two | 41 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 45 | 5 | |
| 2011–12[25] | League Two | 36 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1[c] | 0 | 39 | 5 | |
| 2012–13[37] | League Two | 43 | 15 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2[d] | 1 | 50 | 18 | |
| Total | 155 | 26 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 172 | 32 | ||
| Sheffield Wednesday | 2013–14[48] | Championship | 25 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | 30 | 3 | |
| 2014–15[52] | Championship | 32 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | — | 36 | 1 | ||
| Total | 57 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 1 | — | 66 | 4 | |||
| Birmingham City | 2015–16[59] | Championship | 40 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | — | 44 | 6 | |
| 2016–17[91] | Championship | 27 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 28 | 3 | ||
| 2017–18[92] | Championship | 41 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 44 | 5 | ||
| 2018–19[93] | Championship | 42 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 43 | 6 | ||
| 2019–20[94] | Championship | 18 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 21 | 1 | ||
| Total | 168 | 20 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 1 | — | 180 | 21 | |||
| East Bengal | 2020–21[46] | Indian Super League | 19 | 3 | — | — | — | 19 | 3 | |||
| Hemel Hempstead Town | 2021–22[46][80] | National League South | 4 | 0 | — | — | 2[e] | 0 | 6 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 403 | 51 | 21 | 4 | 13 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 443 | 60 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| DR Congo | 2010 | 1 | 0 |
| 2015 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2016 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2017 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2018 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2019 | 6 | 0 | |
| Total | 25 | 0 | |
Individual
DR Congo squads | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||
