Jonathan Leko

Jonathan Kisolokele Leko (born 24 April 1999) is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for West Bromwich Albion. Born in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, he grew up in England from the age of eight.

Jonathan Leko
Personal information
Full name Jonathan Kisolokele Leko[1]
Date of birth (1999-04-24) 24 April 1999[2]
Place of birth Kinshasa, DR Congo[3]
Height 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)
Playing position(s) Forward[3]
Club information
Current team
 West Bromwich Albion
Number 20
Youth career
2010–2015 West Bromwich Albion
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2015– West Bromwich Albion 16 (0)
2017–2018 → Bristol City (loan) 11 (0)
2019 → Charlton Athletic (loan) 21 (5)
National team‡
2013–2015 England U16 11 (0)
2014–2016 England U17 15 (2)
2016–2017 England U18 8 (0)
2017–2019 England U19 4 (0)
2019– England U20 3 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 09:02, 22 December 2019 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 13:06, 16 October 2019 (UTC)

Club career

West Bromwich Albion

Early career

Leko has been with West Bromwich Albion since the age of 11.[4] He was included in their 2015 pre-season tour of Austria, making an appearance against Red Bull Salzburg by coming off the bench in a 3–1 loss for the Baggies.[5] Leko made his professional debut on 23 September 2015, coming off the bench in a League Cup defeat to Norwich City.[6] On 2 April 2016, he was named in the matchday squad against Sunderland as a substitute, and came on for Saido Berahino in the 78th minute to make his Premier League debut at 16 years and 344 days.[7][8] He made his first start on 30 April against West Ham United, becoming the first player born in 1999 to start in the Premier League.[9] He made his first Premier League assist in a 1–1 draw against Liverpool, setting up Salomon Rondon's goal with a solo run.[10] Prior to the match, Leko was awarded the club's Young Player of the Season award.[11] On 28 June 2016, he signed his first professional contract, a three-year deal lasting to June 2019.[12]

Leko got his first assist of the 2016–17 season on 24 September 2016 against Stoke City, taking a corner which was headed by Rondón for the winner.[13] He then won the Premier League 2 Player of the Month award for December with the West Bromwich Albion U23s.[14]

Leko was named on the shortlist for the European Golden Boy award at the end of the season for his performances during the calendar year.[15]

Loans

On 28 August 2017, Leko joined Bristol City on a season-long loan.[16] He was recalled by West Brom after 11 goalless appearances in January 2018.[17]

On 8 August 2019, Leko and teammate Sam Field joined Charlton Athletic on a season-long loan.[18] He scored his first goal against Reading on 31 August. In November, he made a complaint to the FA of racial abuse by Leeds United goalkeeper Kiko Casilla, who received an eight-match ban and £60,000 after being found guilty in February 2020.[19]

On 27 December 2019, Charlton confirmed that Leko had suffered an ACL injury in the 11th minute of the 2–2 draw with QPR six days earlier, which ruled him out for the remainder of the season. He returned to West Brom for treatment, having made 21 appearances and scoring 5 times.[20]

International career

Leko has represented England at under-16 and under-17 levels. He assisted and scored for the latter in a 3–1 win over Turkey U17s, moving England one step closer to the Under-17 European Championships in a crucial qualifier.[21] Leko's club team West Brom pulled the player out of the final tournament so he could play in the final two games of the 2015–16 Premier League season.[22]

On 24 August 2016, Leko was called up to the England Under-18 team for the first time. He appeared in both games.[23]

Leko made his England U20 debut during a 0–0 draw with the Netherlands at the New Meadow on 5 September 2019.[24]

Personal life

Leko arrived in England from the Democratic Republic of Congo at the age of eight, when his father was granted asylum.[3]

Career statistics
As of matches played 21 December 2019 [25]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League FA Cup League Cup Other Total
Division AppsGoals AppsGoals AppsGoals AppsGoals AppsGoals
West Bromwich Albion 2015–16[26] Premier League 5000100060
2016–17[27] 9000000090
2017–18[28] 0000100010
2018–19[29] Championship 2020211071
2019–20[30] 0000000000
West Bromwich Albion total 160204110231
Bristol City (loan) 2017–18[31] Championship 110000000110
Charlton Athletic (loan) 2019–20[30] Championship 215000000215
Career total 485204110556

Honours

Individual

References
  1. "Clubs announce 2015/16 Barclays Premier League squads". Premier League. Archived from the original on 28 September 2015. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  2. "England". Dansk Boldspil-Union. Dansk Boldspil-Union. Archived from the original on 13 August 2014. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  3. "West Bromwich Albion hope to keep hold of 15-year-old Jonathan Leko". The Independent. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  4. "Leko ready to kick on". West Bromwich Albion F.C. 28 June 2016. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
  5. https://www.sportsmole.co.uk/football/friendlies/red-bull-salzburg-vs-west-brom-albion_game_44439.html
  6. "Norwich 3–0 West Brom". BBC Sport. BBC Sport. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  7. "Sunderland 0–0 West Brom". BBC Sport. BBC Sport. Retrieved 2 April 2016.
  8. "10 reasons why West Brom's Jonathan Leko". Daily Mirror. 2 April 2016. Retrieved 2 April 2016.
  9. "West Brom 0–3 West Ham". BBC Sport. 30 April 2016. Retrieved 30 April 2016.
  10. "West Brom 1–1 Liverpool". ESPN FC. 15 May 2016. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
  11. "Albion announce end-of-season awards winners". West Bromwich Albion F.C. 15 May 2016. Retrieved 15 May 2016.
  12. "Leko agrees first professional contract". West Bromwich Albion F.C. 28 June 2016. Retrieved 29 June 2016.
  13. "Stoke City 1–1 WBA". BBC Sport. 24 September 2016. Retrieved 24 September 2016.
  14. "Leko named Premier League 2 Player of the Month". West Bromwich Albion. 13 January 2017. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  15. "Leko nominated for Golden Boy award". Birmingham Mail. 14 April 2017. Retrieved 5 June 2017.
  16. "West Bromwich Albion: Bristol City sign winger Jonathan Leko on a season's loan". BBC Sport. 28 August 2017. Retrieved 30 August 2017.
  17. "Bristol City boss Lee Johnson explains reason behind Jonathan Leko's return to West Bromwich Albion". Bristol Post. 1 January 2018. Retrieved 8 August 2019.
  18. "Duo join Addicks on loan". West Bromwich Albion F.C. 8 August 2019. Retrieved 8 August 2019.
  19. "Kiko Casilla: Leeds goalkeeper gets eight-match ban for racism". BBC Sport. 28 February 2020. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
  20. "Duo join Addicks on loan". Charlton Athletic F.C. 27 December 2019. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
  21. http://www.thefa.com/news/2016/mar/24/england-u17s-3-1-turkey
  22. "Leko to miss Euros to stay with Albion". West Bromwich Albion F.C. 1 May 2016. Retrieved 4 May 2016.
  23. "England U18 squad announced". The FA. 24 August 2016. Retrieved 15 September 2016.
  24. "ENGLAND U20S KICK OFF NEW CAMPAIGN WITH A GOALLESS DRAW AGAINST HOLLAND". The FA. 5 September 2019. Retrieved 6 September 2019.
  25. Jonathan Leko at Soccerway. Retrieved 11 November 2016.
  26. "Games played by Jonathan Leko in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  27. "Games played by Jonathan Leko in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
  28. "Games played by Jonathan Leko in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 25 August 2017.
  29. "Games played by Jonathan Leko in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 25 August 2017.
  30. "Games played by Jonathan Leko in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 28 August 2017.
  31. "Games played by Jonathan Leko in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 28 August 2017.
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