At 28, Charly Musonda has drawn the curtain on a football career that once promised more than just brilliance, but also stardom.

His story was heartbreaking, even so, for a promising talent who was believed to have the world at his fingertips, and already had the elites in Europe at loggerheads for his signature before turning professional.

Despite his talent, courage, and willingness, he never had the luck to match. Injuries and a lack of trust from managers threatened his career, and it eventually became too much to handle for the Anderletch Academy alumnus, leading to his decision to retire.

Born with a rare blend of creativity, pace, and elegance, Musonda was destined to take centre stage in the world of football. But fate had other plans. His story is one not of failure, but of frustration, a tale of talent persistently silenced by the unforgiving hand of injury.

The Brussels-born Zambian kicked off his journey with the buzz of a star-in-the-making. Attracted interest from European heavyweights at the age of 15 and eventually signed for Chelsea a year later in 2012 from Anderlecht.

Charly, alongside his two older brothers, Lamisha and Tika, all sons of former Zambian international Charles Musonda Senior, were snapped up by Chelsea, who have had recent success signing players from the country following the signature of Romelu Lukaku, Thibaut Courtois, and Kevin De Bruyne earlier.

Charly Musonda’s Cruel Dance with Misfortune

Musonda's difficulty began right after his move to Stamford Bridge. Although he impressed with the youth team, playing a vital role in their conquest of both the UEFA Youth League and FA Youth Cup in 2015, he was never given the chance with the first team.

He signed his first professional contract after turning 17 in October 2013 but would not make his Chelsea debut until almost four years later, when he came on as a second-half substitute in the FA Community Shield loss to Arsenal in August 2017.

But before then, he spent time on loan at Real Betis, where he made his professional debut in February 2016, starring and picking up the Player of the Match award in a 1-0 LaLiga home win over Valencia.

It appeared his time had finally come as six days later, his first professional goal followed in a 2-2 draw with Deportivo La Coruna, and then he went on to become a regular for the remainder of the season, totaling 16 appearances, all in the league.

His loan was extended for another season, but was ultimately cut short after making just a start in eight appearances in the first half of the season.

A goal on his full Chelsea debut in an EFL win over Nottingham Forest in September 2017 seemed like the spark to ignite a long and fruitful career, and the fans witnessed what they had long anticipated. But what followed was a series of misfortunes that gradually dimmed his light.

The defining blow came in 2019. A severe posterior cruciate ligament injury would change everything. While most injuries in football come with an estimated return date, this one came with a warning for Musonda, a near-death sentence to his career.

In a brutally honest reflection on the unfortunate injury, Musonda, who was at the time on loan at Dutch side Vitesse Arnhem, once revealed:

“I went to consult with a couple of doctors in the UK who worked with big athletes, and one of them just says to me: if you have surgery, you won’t come back from this, it’s impossible.

One told me you only have 20% chance of coming back from this, even though you are fairly young. You are not going to play football at the same level again, probably lower leagues maybe.”

It was a prognosis that would crush even the strongest of spirits. But Musonda wasn’t ready to quit. He defied the verdicts, underwent surgery, and embarked on a recovery that was as lonely as it was grueling.

He spent over 200 days in rehab. At one point, he played just four minutes of football in two years, and just four games in two seasons with Vitesse. The game he loved so much became something he had to watch from afar, as peers he once dazzled with continued their rise.

“The hard part,” he said, “is having talent and not being able to show what you can do, and nobody necessarily knows, unless they’ve followed your story. There’s a whole world of people that don’t know your story and who you are. So knowing that I wouldn’t be able to play, was very very tough.”

Those words strike at the core of Musonda’s heartbreak, not just the injuries, but the obscurity. For a player who once bore comparisons to Eden Hazard, who was tipped to lead Belgium’s next golden generation, the anonymity that injury brought was almost crueler than the pain itself.

Still, Musonda’s resilience deserves more applause than any goal he scored. He eventually made it back onto the pitch again, signing for Levante and playing again at senior level after more than 1000 days.

After just a year in Spain, he signed for Anorthosis in Cyprus. But the toll had been taken. At just 28, a point when many players peak, he has chosen to walk away.

Charly Musonda Career Controversy

Following his breakthrough, Musonda was courted by the Zambian Football Federation, but the son of the country's former international, Charles Musonda, opted to represent Belgium, his country of birth.

His decision was not well received in his fatherland and was constantly targeted by its fans. Musonda represented Belgium at the youth level, but due to how his career panned out, he never got the chance to make his international bow at the senior level.

The significant achievement of his career remains being in the Chelsea squad that won the Premier League title in 2016-17 under Antonio Conte, where he didn't even feature but was around after returning from his loan spell with Betis midway through the season.

At the senior level, Musonda made a total of 73 appearances in nine years as a professional. He scored twice, once for Betis and then for Chelsea, while he also managed five assists.

His career never unfolded as the world expected, but he is hardly responsible for what has befallen him. Yet, the will to keep going when his body said no, tells the true story of the man: One of heart. Of pain, and of a top talent who, despite it all, never gave up.