Koni De Winter
Belgian footballer (born 2002)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Koni De Winter (born 12 June 2002) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as centre-back or full-back for Serie A club Genoa and the Belgium national team.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 12 June 2002 | ||
| Place of birth | Antwerp, Belgium[1] | ||
| Height | 1.91 m (6 ft 3 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Centre-back, full-back | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Genoa | ||
| Number | 4 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2015 | City Pirates Antwerp | ||
| 2015–2016 | Lierse SK | ||
| 2016–2018 | Zulte Waregem | ||
| 2018–2021 | Juventus | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2021–2022 | Juventus U23 | 22 | (2) |
| 2021–2024 | Juventus | 0 | (0) |
| 2022–2023 | → Empoli (loan) | 14 | (0) |
| 2023–2024 | → Genoa (loan) | 29 | (0) |
| 2024– | Genoa | 25 | (3) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2017 | Belgium U15 | 3 | (0) |
| 2017 | Belgium U16 | 2 | (1) |
| 2019 | Belgium U18 | 1 | (0) |
| 2019–2020 | Belgium U19 | 4 | (0) |
| 2021–2023 | Belgium U21 | 18 | (0) |
| 2024– | Belgium | 2 | (0) |
|
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 20:47, 24 May 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 21 March 2025 | |||
Club career
Early career
De Winter played in City Pirates Antwerp until 2015.[2] He played the 2015–16 season in the Lierse SK Youth Sector.[2] The following season, De Winter moved to the Zulte Waregem.[2] In the summer of 2018, De Winter moved to Juventus, becoming the first Belgian footballer ever to play for them.[3][4] In the 2018–19 season, De Winter made 27 appearances and scored one goal with the under-17s.[3] In the 2019–20 season, De Winter made 8 appearances with the under-19s team.[5] The following season, De Winter made 23 appearances with the under-19s[6] often playing as captain.[4]
Juventus
First call-up by Juventus and 2021–22 season
On 28 October 2020, De Winter was called up by Juventus' first team coach Andrea Pirlo for a UEFA Champions League match against Barcelona.[7] On 20 February 2021, he renewed his contract until 2024.[8] On 24 July, De Winter made his unofficial debut for Juventus in a 3–1 win against Cesena; scoring the opening goal in the 4th minute.[9]
De Winter made his debut for Juventus U23 – the reserve team of Juventus – on 22 August 2021 in a 3–2 win against Pro Sesto in the Coppa Italia Serie C.[10] On 20 October, De Winter was sent-off in a 2–2 draw against AlbinoLeffe, ten minutes after his entry onto the field.[11] On 27 October, De Winter scored his first career goal: an equalizing goal in a 1–1 draw against Piacenza.[12]
On 23 November, De Winter made his official debut with the first team as well as his debut in the Champions League in a 4–0 defeat against Chelsea coming on as substitute of Juan Cuadrado in the 81st minute.[13] On 8 December, De Winter made his debut as starter for the first team in a 1–0 win against Malmö FF, becoming the youngest Juventus player to debut as a starter at 19 years and 179 days;[14] he was eventually susbstitued in the 70th minute by Mattia De Sciglio.[15]
On 29 January 2022, he had a luxation of his left shoulder during a match against Feralpisalò.[16] On 6 March, De Winter returned from his injury in a 1–0 win against Pro Sesto coming on as a substitute the 85th minute; four minutes later, De Winter scored the winning goal.[17] After the end of the season, on 9 July, the defender officially renewed his contract with the club until 2026.[18][19]
Loan to Empoli
On 9 July 2022, the same day as his contract extension with Juventus was announced, De Winter was sent on loan to fellow Serie A side Empoli,[20] with the deal being made official by both teams the following day.[19][21][22]
Loan to Genoa
On 11 August 2023, De Winter moved on loan to Genoa, with a conditional obligation to buy.[23]
International career
On 23 March 2024, De Winter debuted for the Belgian senior squad in a friendly match against the Republic of Ireland.[24]
Style of play
A pretty versatile player, De Winter can play as a central defender, a full-back on both sides, a defensive midfielder or even as a mezzala.[2][25]
Personal life
De Winter was born in Belgium to a Belgian father and Congolese mother.[26]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 24 May 2025[27]
| Club | Season | League | Coppa Italia | Europe | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Juventus U23 | 2021–22 | Serie C | 22 | 2 | — | — | 9[a] | 0 | 31 | 2 | ||
| Juventus | 2021–22 | Serie A | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2[b] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Empoli (loan) | 2022–23 | Serie A | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 14 | 0 | ||
| Genoa (loan) | 2023–24 | Serie A | 29 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 31 | 0 | ||
| Genoa | 2024–25 | Serie A | 25 | 3 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 26 | 3 | ||
| Total | 54 | 3 | 3 | 0 | — | — | 57 | 3 | ||||
| Career total | 90 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 0 | 104 | 5 | ||
- Three appearances in Coppa Italia Serie C, six appearances in Serie C promotion play-offs
- Appearances in UEFA Champions League
International
- As of match played 20 March 2025[28]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belgium | 2024 | 1 | 0 |
| 2025 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 2 | 0 | |
Honours
Juventus[27]
- Supercoppa Italiana runner-up: 2021