Ezechiel Banzuzi
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 16 February 2005 | ||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Zwijndrecht, Netherlands[1] | ||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.90 m (6 ft 3 in) | ||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Attacking midfielder | ||||||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||||||
Current team | OH Leuven | ||||||||||||||||
| Number | 6 | ||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||
| –2016 | VVGZ | ||||||||||||||||
| 2016–2021 | NAC Breda | ||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||
| 2021–2023 | NAC Breda | 51 | (5) | ||||||||||||||
| 2023– | OH Leuven | 47 | (3) | ||||||||||||||
| International career‡ | |||||||||||||||||
| 2021–2022 | Netherlands U17 | 9 | (2) | ||||||||||||||
| 2022–2023 | Netherlands U18 | 5 | (7) | ||||||||||||||
| 2023–2024 | Netherlands U19 | 10 | (4) | ||||||||||||||
| 2024– | Netherlands U21 | 1 | (0) | ||||||||||||||
Medal record
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*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 16:08, 14 October 2024 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 10 October 2024 | |||||||||||||||||
Ezechiel Banzuzi (born 16 February 2005) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Belgian Pro League club OH Leuven. Born in the Netherlands, he is of Congolese descent.
Club career
[edit]NAC Breda
[edit]Banzuzi progressed through VVGZ and NAC Breda's youth teams, joining the latter at age eleven. He made his professional debut for the club on 26 October 2021, in a cup match against VVV-Venlo, which NAC won on penalties. Banzuzi entered the match as a substitute in the 75th minute, replacing Pjotr Kestens.[2] At the age of sixteen, he appeared in ten matches for NAC without signing a professional contract, attracting interest from other clubs. On 8 January 2022, prior to a match against Eindhoven, Banzuzi hinted at a possible departure through a Snapchat post, which led to his demotion back to the youth team.[3] However, in February 2022, he was reinstated to the first team.[4][5]
Following this, Banzuzi saw increased playing time in league matches during the 2021–22 season, making a total of 20 appearances, nine of which were as a starter.[6] NAC Breda qualified for the promotion play-offs, where they were eliminated in the first round by ADO Den Haag.[7] In the subsequent season, Banzuzi again helped NAC reach the play-offs, where they initially advanced past MVV in the first round but were eliminated by Emmen.[8][9] During the regular season, he made 31 appearances, contributing five goals and four assists to the team's qualification for the play-off rounds.[6]
OH Leuven
[edit]On 20 June 2023, Banzuzi signed a three-year contract with Belgian Pro League club OH Leuven.[10][11]
International career
[edit]Born in the Netherlands, Banzuzi is of Congolese descent.[12]
Career statistics
[edit]- As of match played 5 October 2024[6]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Other | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| NAC Breda | 2021–22 | Eerste Divisie | 20 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2[a] | 1 | 24 | 1 |
| 2022–23 | Eerste Divisie | 31 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 4[a] | 1 | 28 | 2 | |
| Total | 51 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 59 | 7 | ||
| OH Leuven | 2023–24 | Belgian Pro League | 37 | 2 | 3 | 1 | — | 40 | 3 | |
| 2024–25 | Belgian Pro League | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 10 | 1 | ||
| Total | 47 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 50 | 4 | ||
| Career total | 98 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 109 | 11 | ||
- ^ a b Appearances in Eredivisie promotion/relegation playoffs
References
[edit]- ^ "De eerste van Banzuzi". De Klok (in Dutch). 95: 7. 19 November 2022.
- ^ "Ezechiel Banzuzi tekent op 17e verjaardag eerste profcontract bij NAC". Zundertse Bode (in Dutch). 17 February 2022. Archived from the original on 2 December 2023. Retrieved 14 October 2024.
- ^ Kerkdijk, Daniël Cabot (11 January 2022). "NAC-tiener uit selectie gezet na curieuze Snapchat-publicatie". Voetbalzone (in Dutch). Retrieved 14 October 2024.
- ^ "Ezechiel Banzuzi tekent eerste profcontract". NAC Breda (in Dutch). 16 February 2022. Archived from the original on 2 March 2024. Retrieved 14 October 2024.
- ^ Blanco, Yadran (3 February 2022). "NAC sluit Banzuzi in de armen, middenvelder tekent alsnog contract en blijft in Breda". BN De Stem (in Dutch). Retrieved 14 October 2024.
- ^ a b c Ezechiel Banzuzi at Soccerway
- ^ Abbenhuijs, Marijn (14 May 2022). "ADO Den Haag beslist beladen tweestrijd met NAC Breda en blijft in de race voor promotie". Algemeen Dagblad (in Dutch). Retrieved 14 October 2024.
- ^ "NAC zet eerste stap richting eredivisie met overtuigende zege op MVV". Algemeen Dagblad (in Dutch). 27 May 2023. Retrieved 14 October 2024.
- ^ "Emmen neemt met zege op NAC eerste horde richting lijfsbehoud en staat in finale play-offs". Algemeen Dagblad (in Dutch). 3 June 2023. Retrieved 14 October 2024.
- ^ "Ezechiel Banzuzi vertrekt naar OH Leuven". NAC Breda (in Dutch). 20 June 2023. Archived from the original on 15 July 2023. Retrieved 14 October 2024.
- ^ "Eerste zomertransfer voor OH Leuven". OHL – Oud-Heverlee Leuven (in Dutch). 14 October 2024. Archived from the original on 15 June 2024. Retrieved 14 October 2024.
- ^ Blanco, Yadran (2 November 2021). "Oudere broer waakt als een engel over NAC-talent Banzuzi" [Older brother watches over NAC talent Banzuzi . like an angel]. bndestem.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 16 May 2022. (subscription required)
- 2005 births
- Living people
- Footballers from Zwijndrecht, Netherlands
- Dutch men's footballers
- Netherlands men's youth international footballers
- Netherlands men's under-21 international footballers
- Dutch people of Democratic Republic of the Congo descent
- Men's association football midfielders
- NAC Breda players
- Oud-Heverlee Leuven players
- Eerste Divisie players
- Belgian Pro League players
- Dutch expatriate men's footballers
- Dutch expatriate sportspeople in Belgium
- 21st-century Dutch sportsmen