Joel Ngoya will feature in Spanish top-flight for the four upcoming seasons as the Congolese defensive midfielder pens a four-year deal with Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid.

Joel Ngoya (18), a defensive midfielder who passed through Laval between 2016 and 2019 before joining Lille last season, has just signed his first professional contract with Atletico, Madrid for a period of four years. 

He had reached the end of his aspiring contract with the northern club at the end of June 2019 and had decided to decline the Lille proposal. 

Though he made some good performances with the LOSC U19 in the league or in the Youth League, the Congolese decided to leave Lille at the end of his contract aspiring to June 30. 

Despite attempts by the northern club to sign him pro and recent approaches from OM, Arsenal, AS Roma and Lazio Rome, this great, very technical left-hander, capable of both playing as a sentinel and ‘at the position of midfielder, finally decided to engage with Atletico de Madrid.

This season, with Lille, the one who will train from time to time with the pro group led by Diego Simeone, has played three Youth League matches. The Mastiffs were eliminated by Midtjylland in the round of 16 of the European Cup for young people under 19.