In this Congolese name, the surname is Mpasi and the post-surname is Nzau.
Not to be confused with Lionel Messi.

Lionel Mpasi
Mpasi with DR Congo at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations
Personal information
Full name Lionel Mpasi Nzau
Date of birth (1994-08-01) 1 August 1994 (age 31)
Place of birth Meaux, France
Height 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position Goalkeeper
Team information
Current team
Le Havre
Number 77
Youth career
2001–2009 Torcy
2009–2011 Paris Saint-Germain
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2011–2012 Paris Saint-Germain II 3 (0)
2012–2016 Toulouse II 23 (0)
2016–2025 Rodez 128 (1)
2018–2020 → Rodez II (loan) 10 (0)
2025– Le Havre 4 (0)
International career‡
2010 France U16 2 (0)
2011 France U17 7 (0)
2011 France U18 3 (0)
2022– DR Congo 33 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 15 February 2026
‡ National team caps and goals as of 1 July 2026

Lionel Mpasi Nzau (born 1 August 1994) is a professional footballer who plays as goalkeeper for Ligue 1 club Le Havre. Born in France, he plays for the DR Congo national team.

Early life

Mpasi was born in Meaux, in the eastern suburbs of Paris, to Congolese parents.[1][2] He acquired French nationality on 31 August 2000, through the collective effect of his father's naturalization.[3]

Club career

A youth product of PSG, Mpasi signed his first professional contract with Toulouse before moving to Rodez in 2016.[4] Mpasi made his professional debut with Rodez in a 0–0 Ligue 2 tie with Le Mans FC on 14 February 2020.[5]

On 13 July 2025, he signed a two-year contract with Le Havre, a Ligue 1 club, as the second-choice goalkeeper behind Mory Diaw, his former youth teammate at Paris Saint-Germain.[6][7]

On 18 January 2026, he made his debut for Le Havre in a Ligue 1 match against Rennes on Matchday 18 of the season. The match ended in a 1–1 draw.[8][9]

International career

Mpasi is a former youth international for France.[10] However, he decided to represent the home country of his parents, DR Congo. Being selected without appearing on the pitch, he finally debuted for the DR Congo national team in a 1–0 friendly loss to Bahrain on 1 February 2022.[11]

On 27 December 2023, he was selected from the list of 24 Congolese players selected by Sébastien Desabre to participate in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations. As a full goalkeeper, he contested the three first-round matches, all ended in a tie against Zambia 1–1 and Morocco 1–1 and Tanzania 0–0, respectively. In the eighth final, against the Egypt team, with the game ending in a 1–1 draw, he scored the last shot at the goal in a sudden death penalty shootout after the opposing goalkeeper Gabaski sent his shot over the bar, giving Congo the win 8-7 on penalties.[12]

On 19 May 2026, he was included in the 26-man squad selected by head coach Sébastien Desabre to represent the DR Congo at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.[13] Mpasi went on to start four games before DR Congo were knocked out by England in the round of 32.[14][15] During the group-stage, Mpasi conceded one goal to Portugal, but made eight saves and conceded one goal in the next match against Colombia. He made one save and conceded one goal during the match with Uzbekistan. When DR Congo faced England after reaching the round of 32 for the first time, Mpasi made multiple saves, including two against Jude Bellingham. However, Harry Kane scored two goals past Mpasi late in the match, resulting in England's victory.[16][17]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 15 February 2026[18]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] League cup Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
PSG II 2010–11 CFA 0 0 — — — — 0 0
2011–12 CFA 3 0 — — — — 3 0
Total 3 0 — — — — 3 0
Toulouse II 2012–13 CFA 2 6 0 — — — — 6 0
2013–14 CFA 2 5 0 — — — — 5 0
2014–15 CFA 2 12 0 — — — — 12 0
Total 23 0 — — — — 23 0
Rodez 2016–17 CFA 1 0 — — — — 1 0
2017–18 National 1 0 4 0 — — — 5 0
2018–19 National 2 0 2 0 — — — 4 0
2019–20 Ligue 2 1 0 3 0 0 0 — — 4 0
2020–21 Ligue 2 21 0 0 0 — — — 21 0
2021–22 Ligue 2 37 0 0 0 — — — 37 0
2022–23 Ligue 2 27 0 0 0 — — — 27 0
2023–24 Ligue 2 18 0 0 0 — — — 18 0
2024–25 Ligue 2 20 1 0 0 — — — 20 1
Total 128 1 9 0 0 0 — — 137 1
Rodez II (loan) 2018–19 National 3 7 0 — — — — 7 0
2019–20 National 3 2 0 — — — — 2 0
2020–21 National 3 1 0 — — — — 1 0
Total 10 0 — — — — 10 0
Le Havre 2025–26 Ligue 1 4 0 0 0 — — — 4 0
Career total 178 1 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 187 1
  1. ^ Includes Belgian Cup, FA Cup, Taça de Portugal, Coupe de France

International

As of match played 1 July 2026[19]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
DR Congo 2022 2 0
2023 6 0
2024 9 0
2025 7 0
2026 9 0
Total 33 0

References

  1. ^ Muko (20 January 2021). "Lionel Mpasi-Nzau (Rodez): "Représenter la patrie ? Ce serait un grand plaisir !"". LEOPARDSFOOT (in French). Retrieved 7 January 2024.
  2. ^ "Les Échos de Muko: Bolasie démarre fort, Bakagoal frappe pour la reprise, Mpoku décisif". 17 September 2019.
  3. ^ "JORF n° 0203 du 2 septembre 2000 – Légifrance". legifrance.gouv.fr. Retrieved 7 January 2024.
  4. ^ "Mpasi: "Redécouvrir le Stadium avec Rodez, c'est juste incroyable"". LesViolets.Com.
  5. ^ "Le Mans vs. Rodez – 14 February 2020 – Soccerway". ca.soccerway.com.
  6. ^ "Mercato : Le Havre officialise l'arrivée de Lionel Mpasi". L'Équipe (in French). 13 July 2025. Retrieved 13 July 2025.
  7. ^ Cassé, Josué (13 July 2025). "Le Havre s'offre Lionel Mpasi-Nzau". Foot Mercato (in French). Retrieved 13 July 2025.
  8. ^ Sébastien Buron (18 January 2026). "Le PFC fait une belle opération à Nantes dans la course au maintien, Rennes freiné par Le Havre". L'Équipe (in French). Retrieved 18 January 2026.
  9. ^ Cassé, Josué (18 January 2026). "Ligue 1 : le Stade Rennais accroché par Le Havre, le Paris FC enfonce Nantes". Foot Mercato (in French). Retrieved 18 January 2026.
  10. ^ Calabresi, Fabien. "Coupe de France – Lionel MPASI (Rodez): " Je me mets en mode compétition "". www.footpy.fr. Archived from the original on 23 February 2020. Retrieved 23 February 2020.
  11. ^ "Bahrain beat DR Congo in friendly | THE DAILY TRIBUNE | KINGDOM OF BAHRAIN". DT News.
  12. ^ https://twitter.com/MickyJnr__/status/1751756873378791774
  13. ^ Pierre Desorgues (19 May 2026). "Coupe du monde 2026: la liste des 26 joueurs congolais sans nouveaux venus et sans Afimico Pululu fait réagir". tv5monde.com. TV5 Monde. Retrieved 23 May 2026..
  14. ^ "Mobile livescore - Flashscore.mobi football scores". www.flashscore.mobi. Retrieved 1 July 2026.
  15. ^ Delaney, Miguel (1 July 2026). "England vs DR Congo LIVE: Superb Kane double saves Three Lions from humiliating World Cup exit". The Independent. Retrieved 1 July 2026.
  16. ^ Mader, Daniel (1 July 2026). "Who is Lionel Mpasi? Meet DR Congo goalkeeper stunning England in knockout stage". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved 1 July 2026.
  17. ^ Busbee, Jay (1 July 2026). "Harry Kane's late brace saves England from stunning upset against DR Congo". Yahoo Sports. Retrieved 1 July 2026.
  18. ^ Lionel Mpasi at Soccerway
  19. ^ "Lionel Mpasi". National Football Teams.