Mustapha Bundu

Mustapha Bundu (born 27 February 1997) is a Sierra Leonean professional footballer who plays as a forward for Anderlecht and the Sierra Leonean national team.[1]

Mustapha Bundu
Personal information
Full name Mustapha Bundu
Date of birth (1997-02-27) 27 February 1997
Place of birth Freetown, Sierra Leone
Height 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Playing position(s) Forward
Club information
Current team
 Anderlecht
Number 19
Youth career
Craig Bellamy Academy
Hartpury College
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2015 Newquay
2015–2016 Hereford 29 (26)
2016–2020 AGF 87 (15)
2020– Anderlecht 0 (0)
National team
2019– Sierra Leone 1 (0)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 7 August 2020

Born in Freetown, Bundu started playing youth football for the Craig Bellamy Academy before moving to the United Kingdom to play for Hartpury College. He then went on to appear for lower league sides Newquay and Hereford. In 2016, Bundu signed for Danish Superliga club AGF after a successful trial. After growing out to become an important piece for the first team, he transferred to Anderlecht in 2020.

After multiple call-ups for the Sierra Leone national team, Bundu made his international debut on 4 September 2019 in a game against Liberia.

Club career

Early career

The native of Freetown, Sierra Leone, spent his youth football playing in the Craig Bellamy Academy before obtaining a student visa to study at Hartpury College to further pursue his football career.[2]

He graduated from Hartpury College in 2016,[3] scoring 18 goals in six outings in the English Schools' FA Cup.[4]

Hereford

Bundu spent a season at Hereford, winning three trophies and reaching the FA Vase final in 2016. Work authorization restrictions only allowed him to ply his trade in a club no higher than the 5th tier in the English football league system which forced him to leave Hereford. The goalscorer returned briefly to spectate one of their games, a 6–0 defeat of Bridgwater Town F.C. in the Southern Football League.[5]

When visiting a friend, he featured for Newquay A.F.C. once, netting two goals in less than thirty minutes as a substitute. Then coach Sash Wheatman acclaimed him as 'the best player he's had the privilege of watching at this level of football', adding 'it was like bringing on Ronaldo on or Gareth Bale- he was streets ahead.'[4]

AGF

Bundu went on a trial with Danish Superliga club AGF in the start of August 2016.[6] After a successful trial, he signed a contract with the club on 31 August 2016.[7]

In an away defeat to Brøndby IF, he made his Superliga debut as a substitute on 23 October 2016. He came on the pitch in the 78th minute, replacing Martin Spelmann.[8] In December 2016, Bundu extended his contract until 2021.[9]

Bundu had his breakout season in 2019–20, scoring eight goals in the first 20 league matches of the season.[1] He finished the season with 10 goals in 30 total appearances, as he helped AGF finish in third place in the Superliga-table; the club's first top-three finish in 23 years.[10] Bundu's season would, however, be hampered in the last month by contracting COVID-19 which kept him out for the last few games of the season.[11][12]

Anderlecht

On 7 August 2020, Bundu joined Belgian club Anderlecht for an undisclosed fee, believed to be between DKK 25–30 million – making him the most expensive sale in the history of AGF.[13] He signed a four-year contract with Anderlecht.[11]

International career

Bundu received his first international call-up in August 2018, being a member of a preliminary squad.[14] However, he did not make the final 23-man squad.[15] He made his debut in a 3–1 World Cup qualifying loss to Liberia on 4 September 2019.[16]

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References
  1. "Sierra Leone - M. Bundu - Profile with news, career statistics and history - Soccerway". us.soccerway.com. Retrieved 31 October 2016.
  2. "Mustapha Bundu's journey from war-torn Sierra Leone to Wembley - The Set Pieces". thesetpieces.com. Retrieved 31 October 2016.
  3. "Mustapha Bundu - Hudl". hudl.com. Retrieved 31 October 2016.
  4. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 17 March 2017. Retrieved 16 March 2017.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  5. "VIDEO: Bundu on what playing for Hereford FC meant for him". Hereford Times. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
  6. AGF tester angriber‚ bold.dk, 2 August 2016
  7. AGF skriver med Bundu‚ bold.dk, 31 August 2016
  8. "Football Sierra Leone | Mustapha Bundu makes first AGF Aarhus appearance in away defeat". footballsierraleone.net. Retrieved 31 October 2016.
  9. AGF forlænger med fire mand‚ bold.dk, 5 December 2016
  10. "AGF får bronze trods nederlag til Brøndby". dr.dk. Danmarks Radio. 26 July 2020. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  11. Calcoen, Pieter-Jan (7 August 2020). "Bundu, met de B van Bellamy, tekent voor vier jaar: nieuwste Anderlecht-aanwinst op z'n 17de op negende niveau in Engeland". hln.be. Het Laatste Nieuws. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  12. Leer Scharnberg, Martin; Højris Schmidt, Lasse; Messer, Anders Keld (22 July 2020). "AGF-angriber testet positiv for corona: Ude resten af sæsonen". dr.dk. Danmarks Radio. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  13. Elkjær, Kenneth (7 August 2020). "Officielt: Bundu er solgt i historisk stor handel". tv2ostjylland.dk. TV 2/Østjylland. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  14. Barrie, Mohamed Fajah (24 August 2018). "Bellamy academy graduate Mustapha Bundu gets Sierra Leone call-up". BBC Sport. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
  15. Barrie, Mohamed Fajah (28 August 2018). "Sierra Leone coach explains Bellamy graduate Bundu's absence". BBC Sport. Retrieved 28 August 2019.
  16. https://www.agf.dk/klubben/nyhedsarkiv/2019/september/landsholdsdebut-til-mustapha-bundu/
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