Early Life
LuaLua was born Trésor Lua Lua Lomana - Lua Lua, his grandfather's given name, was passed to him and his brother Kazenga - in Kinshasa, Zaire (now Democratic Republic of the Congo), in 1980, but moved to England as a young boy in 1989. His family settled in Forest Gate in London; there, he attended Forest Gate Community School and started to play football at the age of 16, while also being involved in gymnastics. LuaLua represented his school at football after he was spotted kicking a tennis ball around in the playground. He was playing for Leyton Sixth Form College, where he studied performing arts, when he was spotted at the age of 17 by second division side, Colchester United. Geoff Harrop, a scout for Colchester College's football team, was impressed by LuaLua's performance, "He was taking on the whole team by the end of the game and it wasn't hard to pick him out among 22 young 17-year-olds." Harrop invited the striker for a trial at Colchester United and he was signed by the club.
His brother, Kazenga LuaLua, is also a professional footballer, and two of his cousins also play professionally; Yannick Bolasie, and Trésor Kandol.
Read more about this topic: Lomana LuaLua
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