Grady Diangana

Grady George Diangana (born 19 April 1998) is a DR Congolese professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Championship club West Bromwich Albion. He has previously played for West Ham United. A former youth international for England, Diangana plays for the DR Congo national team.

Grady Diangana
Diangana with West Ham United in 2019
Personal information
Full name Grady George Diangana[1]
Date of birth (1998-04-19) 19 April 1998[2]
Place of birth Lubumbashi, DR Congo
Height 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)[3]
Position(s) Attacking Midfielder / Winger
Team information
Current team
 West Bromwich Albion
Number 11
Youth career
2010–2016 West Ham United
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2016–2020 West Ham United 17 (0)
2019–2020 → West Bromwich Albion (loan) 30 (8)
2020– West Bromwich Albion 100 (8)
International career‡
2018–2019 England U20 2 (0)
2019 England U21 1 (0)
2023– DR Congo 1 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 13:32, 25 October 2023 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 20:52, 13 October 2023 (UTC)

Early life

Diangana was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo. His family moved to the United Kingdom when he was four years old. Diangana grew up in Woolwich, London.[4][5]

Club career

West Ham United

Diangana joined the West Ham youth system in 2010, aged 12.[6] Originally a striker, he began playing as an attacking midfielder at under-15 level. He made his under-18 debut for the club in February 2014, and his Premier League 2 debut in January 2015. He signed his first professional contract with the Hammers on 14 May 2016.[2] He signed a new two-year contract in June 2018.[7]

On 26 September 2018, Diangana made his first team debut in the EFL Cup against Macclesfield Town, playing the full game and scoring two goals in an 8–0 victory at the London Stadium, in which fellow debutants Conor Coventry and Joe Powell also featured.[8] Three days later, Diangana made his first Premier League appearance, coming on as a 93rd-minute substitute for Felipe Anderson in a 3–1 home victory against Manchester United.[9] Diangana became a regular in the team following an injury to Andriy Yarmolenko, making his first Premier League start against Leicester City on 27 October and registering his first league assist in the following game, against Burnley.[10][11] On 18 January 2019, Diangana signed a new six-year contract that would have kept him at West Ham until 2025.[12]

Loan to West Bromwich Albion

On 8 August 2019, Diangana joined West Bromwich Albion on loan until the end of the season[13] He made his West Brom debut on 13 August 2019 in a 2–1 home defeat by Millwall in the first round of the EFL Cup.[14] Diangana scored his first two goals for West Brom on his league debut, on 17 August 2019. Coming on at half-time for Kyle Edwards against Luton Town, scoring two goals in six minutes in a 2–1 win which ended Luton's run of 28 home games unbeaten.[15] Diangana played 30 times in the league for Albion, scoring eight goals as they won promotion to the Premier League. This included a goal and an assist in the final game of the season, a 2–2 draw against Queens Park Rangers as Albion returned to the top flight after a two-year absence.[16]

West Bromwich Albion

On 4 September 2020, West Bromwich Albion announced the signing of Diangana for an undisclosed fee on a five-year deal.[17] The decision to sell him by West Ham chairman David Sullivan was controversial amongst both fans and players. West Ham club captain Mark Noble openly stated that he was "angry and sad that Grady has left" in a comment which gathered support from fellow players including Declan Rice and Jack Wilshere.[18]

Diangana scored his first Premier League goal in a 5–2 defeat to Everton. It was a long-range solo effort from 20 yards out which beat Jordan Pickford into the bottom right hand corner.[19] Despite a difficult start to the season for West Brom, Diangana was a regular starter on the left flank under manager Slaven Bilić.

International career

In November 2018, Diangana received his first international call-up, for England U20, for a game against Germany U20.[20] He made his England debut on 19 November in a 2–0 win against Germany.[21]

In September 2019, Diangana was called into the England U21 team for the first time, for matches against Turkey U21 and Kosovo U21 after impressing with three goals in his first four matches on loan in the Championship with West Bromwich Albion.[22] Diangana made his U21 debut during a 2–1 defeat to the Netherlands in Doetinchem on 19 November 2019.[23]

Diangana switched allegiance to his country of birth at senior level in 2023, and was called up by DR Congo for the first time on 2 October for their friendlies against New Zealand and Portugal.[24] He made his debut on 13 October in a 1-1 draw with New Zealand in a friendly match played in Spain. [25]

Style of play

Diangana generally plays as a right-sided attacking midfielder but can play across the forward line. He cites Ronaldinho as an influence.[6] In 2019, after breaking in to the West Ham first team under Manuel Pellegrini, he stated "The manager’s style of play is what I’ve grown up watching and trying to take into my game. For me, it’s been perfect" as well as citing West Ham United Academy coach Trevor Bumstead for encouraging him to express himself from a young age. [26]

Career statistics
As of match played 3 October 2023
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League FA Cup EFL Cup Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
West Ham United 2018–19[27] Premier League 1702022—212
West Bromwich Albion (loan) 2019–20 Championship 3080010—318
West Bromwich Albion 2020–21 Premier League 2010010—211
2021–22 Championship 4121000—422
2022–23 3143010—354
2023–24 500000—50
Total 1271540300013415
Career total 1441560527015517

    References
    1. "Notification of shirt numbers: West Bromwich Albion" (PDF). English Football League. p. 75. Retrieved 28 October 2019.
    2. "Grady Diangana". West Ham United F.C. Retrieved 5 February 2019.
    3. "Grady Diangana". 11v11. Retrieved 12 October 2019.
    4. "West Ham academy staging a revival as Diangana shines brightest". London Evening Standard. 27 September 2018. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
    5. MacInnes, Paul (20 November 2018). "West Ham's Grady Diangana: 'I feel I can go out there and express myself'". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 January 2019.
    6. Johnson, Greg (14 September 2018). "Who is Grady Diangana? The West Ham youngster making his debut against Macclesfield Town". football.london. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
    7. "Hammers youngster Diangana pens new two-year contract". West Ham United F.C. 14 June 2018. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
    8. "West Ham 8–0 Macclesfield: Hammers thrash Macclesfield to reach fourth round". BBC Sport. 26 September 2018. Retrieved 4 October 2018.
    9. "West Ham United 3–1 Manchester United: Mourinho's side record worst start since 1989–90". BBC Sport. 29 September 2018. Retrieved 30 September 2018.
    10. Inkersole, Sam (6 November 2018). "West Ham starlet Grady Diangana earns first England U20 call up". football.london. Retrieved 26 November 2018.
    11. Dove, Ed (2 November 2018). "Will Diangana be West Ham's next homegrown superstar?". ESPN. Retrieved 26 November 2018.
    12. "Grady Diangana signs new long-term West Ham contract". West Ham United F.C. 18 January 2019. Retrieved 19 January 2019.
    13. "Albion recruit Diangana on loan". West Bromwich Albion F.C. 8 August 2019. Retrieved 8 August 2019.
    14. Hatfield, Luke. "Carabao Cup: West Brom 1 Millwall 2 - Report and pictures". www.expressandstar.com.
    15. "Luton Town 1-2 West Bromwich Albion: Grady Diangana's quickfire double helps Baggies beat Hatters". BBC Sport. 17 August 2019. Retrieved 6 December 2019.
    16. Harbey, George (23 July 2020). "'Please stay', 'Kidnap him now' – Many West Brom fans react to Grady Diangana's message in wake of promotion | Football League World". footballleagueworld.co.uk.
    17. "Diangana pens permanent deal at Albion" (Press release). West Bromwich Albion F.C. 4 September 2020. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
    18. "West Ham captain Mark Noble 'angry and sad', while Declan Rice is gutted as talented winger is sold to West Brom". talkSPORT. 5 September 2020. Retrieved 17 October 2020.
    19. Smyth, Rob (19 September 2020). "Everton 5-2 West Bromwich Albion: Premier League – as it happened". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 17 October 2020.
    20. "Diangana earns first England U20s call-up". West Ham United F.C. 9 November 2018. Retrieved 9 November 2018.
    21. "Diangana dazzles in England debut victory". West Ham United F.C. 19 November 2018. Retrieved 26 November 2018.
    22. "Diangana called into England U21 squad | West Ham United".
    23. "Young Lions Lose to the Dutch After a Stunning Last-Gasp Winner in Doetincham". TheFA.com. 19 November 2018. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
    24. "West Brom's Grady Diangana called up by DR Congo after allegiance change". Express&Star. 3 October 2023. Retrieved 3 October 2023.
    25. "Grady Diangana makes DR Congo debut as Semi Ajayi earns Nigeria minutes". West Bromwich Albion. 13 October 2023. Retrieved 14 October 2023.
    26. "Diangana-Pellegrinis playing style is perfect for me". West Ham United F.C. 9 January 2019. Retrieved 22 November 2022.
    27. "Games played by Grady Diangana in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 27 September 2018.
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