Ezri Konsa

Ezri Konsa

Konsa playing for Aston Villa in 2021
Personal information
Full name	Ezri Ngoyo Konsa
Date of birth	(1997-10-23) 23 October 1997 (age 26)
Place of birth	Newham, England
Height	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) [1]
Position(s)	Centre-back, right-back [2]
Team information
Current team	Aston Villa
Number	4
Youth career
	Senrab
0000–2016	Charlton Athletic
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2016–2018	Charlton Athletic	71	(0)
2018–2019	Brentford	42	(1)
2019–	Aston Villa	158	(6)
International career‡
2017–2018	England U20	5	(0)
2018–2019	England U21	7	(1)
2024–	England	2	(0)
Medal record Men's football Representing   England FIFA U-20 World Cup Winner 2017
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 20:21, 14 April 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 22:55, 26 March 2024 (UTC)

Ezri Ngoyo Konsa (born 23 October 1997) is an English professional footballer who plays as a centre-back or right-back for Premier League club Aston Villa and the England national team.

Konsa came through the academy at Charlton Athletic, and later joined Brentford and Aston Villa. He played for England at youth level, winning the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup with the under-20 team and the 2018 Toulon Tournament with the under-21s, before making his senior debut in March 2024.

Early life

Ezri Ngoyo Konsa ^[3] was born on 23 October 1997 ^[1] in Newham, Greater London, ^[4] to a DR Congolese father and an Angolan mother. ^[5] He attended Cumberland Sports College and is a boyhood Tottenham Hotspur F.C. supporter. ^{[6] [7]}

Club career

Charlton Athletic

Konsa began his career with Senrab and joined Charlton Athletic at the age of 11. ^[6] He began a scholarship in July 2014 and progressed sufficiently to sign a "long term" professional contract on 11 December 2015. ^{[8] [9]} Eight days later, he received his maiden call into the first-team squad for a Championship match versus Burnley and remained an unused substitute during the 4–0 defeat. ^[10] Konsa was an unused substitute on one further occasion during the 2015–16 season, ^[10] which culminated in Charlton's relegation to League One. ^[11]

Konsa broke into the squad during the 2016–17 pre-season and made his debut on 9 August 2016 with a start in a 1–0 EFL Cup first round defeat to Cheltenham Town. ^{[12] [13]} He was a regular throughout the 2016–17 season and finished the campaign with 39 appearances. ^[13] He also showed his versatility by deputising in midfield and at full-back. ^[12] For his efforts, Konsa was named the club's Young Player of the Year. ^[14] He signed a new three-year contract in March 2017 and was again a regular during the 2017–18 season, ^[15] making 47 appearances as Charlton reached the League One play-off semi-finals. ^{[11] [16]}

Brentford

On 12 June 2018, Konsa signed for Championship club Brentford on a three-year contract, with the option of a further year, for an undisclosed fee, ^[17] reported to be £2.5 million. ^[18] He was a first choice in central defence throughout the 2018–19 season and scored the first senior goal of his career in a 3–0 victory over Preston North End on the final day. ^[19]

Aston Villa

On 11 July 2019, Konsa signed for newly promoted Premier League club Aston Villa, for an undisclosed fee. ^[20] The move reunited Konsa with Dean Smith, who signed him for Brentford one year earlier, and Richard O'Kelly. He scored on his debut for Villa in an EFL Cup tie against Crewe Alexandra on 27 August 2019. ^[21] On 21 January 2020, Konsa assisted Tyrone Mings to set up the winning goal in a 2–1 victory against Watford. ^[22] He scored his first Premier League goal on 16 July 2020, in a 1–1 away draw at Everton. ^[23]

On 2 April 2021, Konsa signed a contract extension with Aston Villa until 2026. ^[24] On 5 December 2021, Konsa scored twice in a 2–1 Premier League victory over Leicester City, becoming the first defender to score twice in a Premier League match for Aston Villa since 2010. ^[25]

On 15 May 2022, Konsa suffered a serious knee injury in a home game against Crystal Palace. Scans confirmed, that although Konsa would miss the remaining two games of the 2021–22 season, he was expected to be fit again in August or September 2022. ^[26]

Konsa returned from injury on the opening day of the 2022–23 season on 6 August 2022, and once again established himself as a first-team regular for Aston Villa. ^[27] On 20 September 2023, he signed a new long-term contract at the club. ^[28]

International career

Youth

Konsa was a member of the England squad that won the 2017 FIFA U-20 World Cup with his only appearance of the tournament coming as a 93rd-minute substitute during the 3–1 semi-final victory over Italy. ^[29]

Konsa was named in the under-21 squad for the 2018 Toulon Tournament and made two appearances. ^{[30] [31]} He was an unused substitute during the 2–1 victory over Mexico in the final. ^[30] Konsa scored his first international goal on his fourth cap, in a 7–0 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification win over Andorra on 11 October 2018. ^[30] He was named in the squad for the tournament finals, ^[19] but made just one appearance, as a substitute in the Young Lions' dead rubber final group stage match. ^[30]

Senior

Konsa received his first call-up for the England senior team in November 2023 ahead of their UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying matches against Malta and North Macedonia, ^[32] but did not play in either match. He made his debut on 23 March 2024, as a 20th-minute substitute in a 1–0 defeat to Brazil at Wembley Stadium in a friendly. ^[33]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 14 April 2024

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			FA Cup		EFL Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Charlton Athletic	2015–16 [34]	Championship	0	0	0	0	0	0	—		0	0
	2016–17 [13]	League One	32	0	3	0	1	0	3 [lower-alpha 1]	0	39	0
	2017–18 [16]	League One	39	0	2	0	2	0	4 [lower-alpha 2]	0	47	0
	Total		71	0	5	0	3	0	7	0	86	0
Brentford	2018–19 [35]	Championship	42	1	4	0	1	0	—		47	1
Aston Villa	2019–20 [36]	Premier League	25	1	0	0	6	1	—		31	2
	2020–21 [37]	Premier League	36	2	0	0	1	0	—		37	2
	2021–22 [38]	Premier League	29	2	1	0	1	0	—		31	2
	2022–23 [39]	Premier League	38	0	0	0	1	0	—		39	0
	2023–24 [40]	Premier League	30	1	2	0	1	0	9 [lower-alpha 3]	0	42	1
	Total		158	6	3	0	10	1	9	0	180	7
Career total			271	7	12	0	14	1	16	0	313	8

1. Appearances in EFL Trophy
2. Two appearances in EFL Trophy, two in League One play-offs
3. Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League

International

As of match played 26 March 2024 ^[41]

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
England	2024	2	0
Total		2	0

Honours

Aston Villa

• EFL Cup runner-up: 2019–20 ^[42]

England U20

• FIFA U-20 World Cup: 2017 ^[43]

England U21

• Toulon Tournament: 2018 ^[44]

Individual

• Charlton Athletic Young Player of the Year: 2016–17 ^[14]

References

1. "Ezri Konsa: Overview". Premier League. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
2. "Ezri Konsa: Profile". worldfootball.net. HEIM:SPIEL. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
3. "2020/21 Premier League squads confirmed". Premier League. 20 October 2020. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
4. "Ezri Konsa: Profile". worldfootball.net. HEIM:SPIEL. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
5. "South London Press exclusive interview with Ezri Konsa – on January transfer window speculation, game time at Charlton Athletic and promotion hopes – South London News". londonnewsonline.co.uk. 23 February 2018. Retrieved 4 August 2018.
6. Cawley, Richard (23 February 2018). "South London Press exclusive interview with Ezri Konsa – on January transfer window speculation, game time at Charlton Athletic and promotion hopes". South London News. Retrieved 29 January 2019.
7. "Academies join forces". Charlton Athletic F.C. 5 September 2012. Archived from the original on 16 June 2017. Retrieved 16 June 2017.
8. "Charlton Athletic FC Academy Player Profiles". Archived from the original on 24 November 2014. Retrieved 5 August 2018.
9. "Academy trio sign new long-term contracts with Charlton Athletic". Charlton Athletic F.C. 11 December 2015. Archived from the original on 16 June 2017. Retrieved 16 June 2017.
10. "Ezri Konsa Ngoyo Player Profile". ESPN FC. Retrieved 4 August 2018.
11. "Charlton Athletic". Football Club History Database. Richard Rundle. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
12. "Player Profile". Charlton Athletic F.C. Retrieved 5 August 2018.
13. "Games played by Ezri Konsa in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
14. "PLAYER OF THE YEAR : 2016/17 a great learning curve for award-winning Ezri Konsa". Charlton Athletic F.C. 3 May 2017. Retrieved 16 June 2017.
15. "Academy graduate Ezri Konsa signs new, three-year contract". Charlton Athletic F.C. 17 March 2017. Retrieved 16 June 2017.
16. "Games played by Ezri Konsa in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
17. "Ezri Konsa signs for Brentford". Brentford F.C. Archived from the original on 26 February 2021. Retrieved 4 August 2018.
18. Storer, Tom (20 August 2018). "Brentford talking points: Konsa's quality, Mepham the leader". FootballLondon. Retrieved 4 February 2019.
19. "Ezri gets number 15 shirt for championships". Brentford F.C. Archived from the original on 4 February 2021. Retrieved 9 June 2019.
20. "Transfer News: Welcome Ezri Konsa". Aston Villa F.C. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
21. "Crewe 1–6 Aston Villa". BBC Sport. 27 August 2019. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
22. "Aston Villa haul themselves out of bottom three with late win over Watford". The Guardian. 21 January 2020. Retrieved 22 January 2020.
23. "Everton 1–1 Aston Villa". BBC Sport. 16 July 2020. Retrieved 16 July 2020.
24. "Konsa pens contract extension". Aston Villa F.C. 2 April 2021. Retrieved 2 April 2021.
25. "Aston Villa 2–1 Leicester City: Steven Gerrard secures win against his former Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers". Sky Sports. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
26. "Ezri Konsa ruled out for up to 16 weeks". Aston Villa F.C. 18 May 2022. Retrieved 18 May 2022.
27. "Bournemouth v Aston Villa, 2022/23". Premier League. 6 August 2022. Retrieved 14 April 2023.
28. "Konsa pens new long-term contract". Aston Villa F.C. 20 September 2023.
29. "Academy Manager takes pride in Konsa and Lookman's World Cup triumph". Charlton Athletic F.C. Retrieved 9 January 2020.
30. "E. Konsa: Summary". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
31. "Ezri Konsa stars on England U21s debut". Charlton Athletic F.C. Retrieved 5 August 2018.
32. Walker, Andy (13 November 2023). "England men's squad updates: Lewis, Palmer and Konsa called up". The Football Association. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
33. McNulty, Phil (23 March 2024). "England 0–1 Brazil". BBC Sport. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
34. "Games played by Ezri Konsa in 2015/2016". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
35. "Games played by Ezri Konsa in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
36. "Games played by Ezri Konsa in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
37. "Games played by Ezri Konsa in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
38. "Games played by Ezri Konsa in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
39. "Games played by Ezri Konsa in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 November 2023.
40. "Games played by Ezri Konsa in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
41. "Ezri Konsa: Internationals". worldfootball.net. HEIM:SPIEL. Retrieved 30 March 2024.
42. McNulty, Phil (1 March 2020). "Aston Villa 1–2 Manchester City". BBC Sport. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
43. "Academy Manager takes pride in Konsa and Lookman's World Cup triumph". Charlton Athletic F.C. Retrieved 5 August 2018.
44. "Final fightback takes England U21S to Toulon hat-trick with win over Mexico". The Football Association. 9 June 2018. Retrieved 10 June 2019.

External links

• Profile at the Aston Villa F.C. website
• Profile at the Football Association website
• Ezri Konsa – UEFA competition record ( archive ) 
• Ezri Konsa – FIFA competition record (archived)