Britt Assombalonga

Britt Curtis Assombalonga (born 6 December 1992) is a Congolese professional footballer who plays as a forward for Barnet and the DR Congo national football team. Assambalonga was born in Kinshasa, Zaire and moved to London, England with his family at eight months old. He grew up in Swiss Cottage, in the London borough of Camden, and attended Whitefield School. He is the son of Fedor Assombalonga, a former Zaire international footballer. His brother, Christian, is also a footballer for Isthmian Premier Division side Billericay Town. Britt Assombalonga began his career with Watford, signing as a 17-year-old youth player in 2010 after making his way through via the Hertswood Impact Scheme. In his first full season in the youth team, he finished as the second top goal scorer while his team made it to the FA Youth Cup quarter-finals. Assombalonga also appeared regularly for Watford's reserve team, and was rewarded for his performances with a one-year professional contract at the end of the season. He was an unused substitute for the senior squad's last two games against Preston North End and Queens Park Rangers. On 17 March 2012, he made his first-team debut in a 0–0 draw with Coventry City. His appearance made him the 50th player to go through Watford's academy and represent the first-team. Assombalonga is eligible to represent both England and the Democratic Republic of the Congo internationally. In August 2014, he was named on a 37-man provisional DR Congo squad list for the 2015 Africa Cup of Nations qualification but withdrew from the final squad. On 4 November 2016, the Nottingham Post reported that Assombalonga had accepted a call-up to the DR Congo national side for their away game against Guinea on 13 November. Assombalonga was forced to pull out of the squad prior to the game as he was not cleared to play in time. The following December, Assombalonga rejected the chance to represent DR Congo at the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations in Gabon, stating that he wanted to focus on playing games for Nottingham Forest after an injury-hit season.