Arthur Masuaku Congolese Footballer From Lille

Early life

Fuka-Arthur Masuaku Kawela was born on 7 November 1993 in Lille, in northern France, to parents from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He acquired French nationality in April 2006. He stands 179 cm tall and plays as a full-back, usually on the left, and has also been used as a centre-back. His football education took place in the youth system of Valenciennes.

Career

Masuaku made his senior debut for Valenciennes in Ligue 1 on the opening day of the 2013-14 season, in a match against Toulouse in August 2013, and was replaced after 75 minutes. He scored his first competitive goal for the club on 29 January 2014 in a 2-1 away defeat by Marseille.

In July 2014 he moved to Olympiacos in Greece. He played his first Super League match against Niki Volos and supplied two assists in his third league outing, a 3-0 home win over OFI. A few days later he made his UEFA Champions League debut and scored in a 3-2 home victory over Atletico Madrid. During spring 2015, Italian clubs were reported to be watching him, but he stayed in Greece. With Olympiacos he won the Greek league title in 2014-15 and 2015-16 and the Greek Cup in 2014-15, and he was included in the league's team of the season in both title years.

West Ham United signed him on 8 August 2016 on a four-year contract for a reported fee of 6.2 million pounds. He made his debut a week later in a 2-1 defeat away to Chelsea. He has said that the pace and physical demands of the Premier League made his first appearance difficult. His first goal for the club came in an EFL Cup tie against Bolton Wanderers on 19 September 2017. In January 2018 he was sent off in an FA Cup tie against Wigan Athletic, the first red card of his career, and was banned for six matches; he later apologised publicly for the incident. In July 2019, after 75 appearances, he signed an extension that ran to 2024 with an option for two more years. On 4 December 2021 he scored the winning goal in a 3-2 victory over Chelsea, which remained his only Premier League goal.

In August 2022 he joined the Turkish club Besiktas on a season-long loan with an option to buy, and the move was made permanent in April 2023. With the club he won the Turkish Cup in 2023-24 and the Turkish Super Cup in 2024. Besiktas announced his departure on 30 June 2025. On 10 August 2025 he signed a two-year contract with Sunderland in the Premier League. In January 2026 he went on loan to Lens, a club where he had played in his youth, until the end of the 2025-26 season, and he was part of the side that won the Coupe de France that year. On 10 August 2026 he joined the Turkish club Konyaspor on a two-year deal.

International career

Masuaku represented France at under-18 and under-19 level in 2011. In June 2017 he switched his allegiance to the DR Congo national team. He received his first call-up in August 2017 for two World Cup qualifiers against Tunisia, but did not play. In March 2018 he travelled with the squad for a friendly against Tanzania and was one of four players who withdrew before the match amid reports of organisational problems. He made his debut on 13 October 2018, starting a 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier that DR Congo lost 2-1 at home to Zimbabwe. He scored his first international goal, a free kick, in a 1-1 draw away to Kenya on 15 June 2019.

He was named in the final squad of 24 for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations. He started the opening game, a 1-1 draw with Zambia on 17 January 2024, and scored in the 3-1 quarter-final win over Guinea on 2 February 2024, which put DR Congo into the semi-finals for the first time since 2015. On 19 May 2026 he was included by head coach Sebastien Desabre in the 26-man squad chosen for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Personal life

Masuaku is a practising Muslim. In June 2025 he made the Umrah pilgrimage to Mecca.