Football
ESPN staff 9y

Wolfsburg's Junior Malanda, 20, killed in car crash

WOLFSBURG, Germany -- Wolfsburg midfielder and Belgium youth international Junior Malanda was killed in a car crash on his way to meet teammates for a training camp on Saturday.

Malanda was a passenger in a Volkswagen Touareg that was traveling toward Hannover when it went off the motorway "for as yet unknown reasons" near Bielefeld in western Germany, police said.

"The car broke through the right guardrail, hit a tree and flipped over several times in the embankment. The car came to a stop on its roof. One person was thrown out of the vehicle by the accident and died at the scene," police said in a statement. "This was the 20-year-old Belgian Bundesliga player of VFL Wolfsburg, Bernhard Geoffrey Malanda Adje."

The driver and another passenger, both also 20-year-old Belgians, were seriously injured and taken to nearby hospitals. The motorway was blocked for about two hours.

"The car was totally destroyed in the accident. At the time, there was heavy rain and gale-force winds," the police statement said.

Malanda was due to leave for Wolfsburg's training camp in South Africa late Saturday. The Wolves announced they had cancelled their scheduled departure Africa as fans gathered at the club's Volkswagen Arena to mourn the midfielder.

Sporting director Klaus Allofs said in a statement: "We are all deeply saddened and our disbelief can hardly be put into words. We all loved him. He was the good spirit of our team and a fun-loving person. In addition, Junior was an excellent football player who was only at the very beginning of his development.

"We still cannot believe that he is no longer with us. Our thoughts at this difficult time are with his family and loved ones." 

Malanda joined Wolfsburg from Belgian Pro League side Zulte Waregem in January 2014, going on to score two goals and set up four more in 17 Bundesliga games. He previously played for Lille in France.

This season Malanda appeared in 10 Bundesliga matches, making four starts, including their most recent game on Dec. 20.

"We are incredibly affected. It's a terrible misfortune," Wolfsburg board member Stephan Gruesem said.

Wolfsburg forward Kevin De Bruyne -- a club-mate and countryman of Malanda -- wrote on Instagram: "So strange to hear your friend in the morning and then hear this news. Lost a great friend way [too] early. Rest in peace my friend. You will always be around."

Belgium goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois also paid his respects on Twitter, writing:

Bundesliga rival Hannover put aside local differences and joined a host of clubs offering condolences.

Malanda is the fourth active Bundesliga player to die in a car accident after Eintracht Braunschweig's Juergen Moll and Lutz Eigendorf in 1968 and 1983, respectively, and Maurice Banach of Cologne in 1991.

Information from the Associated Press and Press Association was used in this report.

^ Back to Top ^