Newcastle are poised to complete the £8.5million signing of
Anderlecht defender Chancel Mbemba, but doubts remain about the
player’s age. The Magpies will sign the Congolese international on the
understanding he is 20 years old. However, it has long since been
reported that Mbemba has four birthdays, ranging from 1988 to 1995.
Mbemba once stated in an interview that he
believed his birthday was
around 1990, which would make him 25. The centre back began his career
in his homeland, where his date of birth was registered as August 8,
1988. By the time he came to sign for Anderlecht in 2012, his new
birthday was stated as August 8, 1995.
However, during qualifying for the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations, Congo
registered him as a November 30, 1991 birth. And to add to the
confusion, Mbemba himself has been quoted as saying he was born in 1990.
Newcastle, however, are said to be relaxed about the situation surrounding a player they regard as the best defender in the Belgian Jupiler League.
He will follow Anderlecht team-mate Aleksandar Mitrovic to Tyneside
after the striker joined in a £12.5m deal earlier this week.
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