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England

Johan Manzambi
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - 10/2026

Personal information
Date of birth
14 October 2005
Place of birth
Geneva, Switzerland
Height
1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position
Midfielder

Team information
Current team
Aston Villa
Number
44

 

Youth career

Servette
-2023

SC Freiburg
2023-2024

Senior career*

SC Freiburg II
2024-2025
20x apps 3x goals

SC Freiburg
2024-2026
38x apps 7x goals

Aston Villa
2026-
3x apps 1x goal

International career‡

Switzerland U18
2023
7x apps 0x goal

Switzerland U19
2023-2024
11x apps 0x goal

Switzerland U20
2024
5x apps 0x goal

Switzerland U21
2025
2x apps 1x goal

Switzerland
2025-
20x apps 7x goals


* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 10 October 2026
‡ National team caps and goals as of 6 October 2026


Johan Manzambi is a Swiss professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Premier League club Aston Villa and the Switzerland national team.

Manzambi is a product of the Servette and SC Freiburg academies. He was a key player in Freiburg's run to the 2026 UEFA Europa League final and was named Europa League Young Player of the Season. Manzambi transferred to Aston Villa in July 2026.

Manzambi was ever-present in Switzerland's 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, and played a key role in their run to the quarter-finals of the final tournament, becoming the youngest player in over 60 years to record five goal contributions (three goals and two assists) in a single World Cup campaign.

 

Early life
Manzambi was born on 14 October 2005 in Geneva, Switzerland. He started playing football at the age of four. His parents are from Angola and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

 

Club career

Freiburg
As a youth player, Manzambi joined the youth academy of Swiss side Servette. In 2023, he joined the youth academy of German Bundesliga side SC Freiburg, was promoted to the club's reserve team in 2024, and then promoted to the first team the same year.

On 21 August 2024, he debuted for them during a 3:0 away loss to 1. FC Heidenheim in the league. He scored his first goal for the club in a 2:1 away win over Borussia Mönchengladbach on 12 April 2025.

Manzambi became a regular starting player for Freiburg in the 2025-26 season, making 47 appearances and recording 16 goal involvements in all competitions.

On 7 May 2026, he scored the second goal for Freiburg in a 3:1 win over Braga in the Europa League semi-final second leg, helping his club reach the final by winning 4:3 on aggregate. He was eventually named the Europa League Young Player of the Season after the team finished runner-up to Aston Villa.

Aston Villa
On 17 July 2026, Manzambi signed for Premier League club Aston Villa for an undisclosed fee. It was reported to be a club-record transfer fee of £59.5 million, including add-ons. Manzambi missed the start of the Premier League season due to an injury suffered at the World Cup and didn't make his debut until 12 September, in a 2:1 defeat to Nottingham Forest. 

Manzambi scored his first goal for Aston Villa on his first start, a 3:2 league victory over Tottenham Hotspur on 19 September.

 

International career
After being capped for Switzerland at every level from under-18 to under-21, Manzambi made his debut for the Switzerland senior team in a 4:2 win over Mexico on 7 June 2025. 

Three days later, he scored his first senior international goal in a 4:0 friendly win over the United States. He went on to appear in all six of the team's 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, scoring in both the home and away fixtures against Sweden.

In May 2026, Manzambi was named to Switzerland's squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. He made his World Cup debut as a substitute for Dan Ndoye in the team's opening Group B fixture against Qatar.

On 18 June, he scored his first two World Cup goals in a 4:1 win against Bosnia and Herzegovina, becoming the youngest Swiss player to score a brace at a FIFA World Cup at 20 years and 247 days and the only Swiss player to score multiple goals coming off the bench as a substitute.

In addition, he became the youngest substitute ever to score a brace in a World Cup match, surpassing the previous record set by Nelson Cuevas. A week later, on 24 June, he scored a goal, provided an assist and earned the Man of the Match award in a 2:1 win over hosts Canada, helping his team finish top of their group.

He later provided an assist in a 2:0 Round of 32 victory over Algeria, becoming the youngest player in over 60 years to record five goal contributions (three goals and two assists) in a single World Cup tournament, at 20 years and 261 days old. 

He sustained a knee injury during a training session before the Round of 16 match against Colombia, which ruled him out for the remainder of the tournament.

 

Style of play
Manzambi plays as a midfielder and is right-footed. Swiss newspaper Blick wrote in 2024 that he is a "fast box-to-box player who is dynamic and energetic".