Ken Monkou
Encyclopedia
Kenneth John "Ken" Monkou (born 29 November 1964 in Nickerie
Nickerie District
Nickerie is a district of Suriname, on the north-west coast. Nickerie's capital city is Nieuw-Nickerie, the second largest city in the country. Other towns include Washoda and Wageningen...

 in Suriname
Suriname
Suriname , officially the Republic of Suriname , is a country in northern South America. It borders French Guiana to the east, Guyana to the west, Brazil to the south, and on the north by the Atlantic Ocean. Suriname was a former colony of the British and of the Dutch, and was previously known as...

) is a retired Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...

 footballer who played in a defensive role.

Born in Suriname
Suriname
Suriname , officially the Republic of Suriname , is a country in northern South America. It borders French Guiana to the east, Guyana to the west, Brazil to the south, and on the north by the Atlantic Ocean. Suriname was a former colony of the British and of the Dutch, and was previously known as...

 but raised in the Netherlands, Monkou's first major side was Feyenoord Rotterdam
Feyenoord Rotterdam
Feyenoord is a Dutch professional football club located in Rotterdam. Along with Ajax and PSV Eindhoven, Feyenoord is one of the "big three" clubs in the Netherlands. These three clubs and Utrecht and Roda JC are the only clubs never to have been relegated from the Dutch first division...

. He moved to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 in May 1989 to sign for newly-promoted to the First Division Chelsea
Chelsea F.C.
Chelsea Football Club are an English football club based in West London. Founded in 1905, they play in the Premier League and have spent most of their history in the top tier of English football. Chelsea have been English champions four times, FA Cup winners six times and League Cup winners four...

 for £100,000. He was their first player from outside the Commonwealth
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...

 since Willi Steffen
Willi Steffen
Willi Steffen was a Swiss international footballer who played as a left-back.Steffen started out as an amateur with Cantonal Neuchâtel and later became the first Swiss footballer to play in England when he signed for Chelsea...

 in 1947. He made an impressive start for his new side, being voted club player of the year in his first season – the first black player to do so for Chelsea – as the team finished 5th in the First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....

 and won the Full Members Cup
Full Members Cup
The Full Members Cup was an association football cup competition held in English football from 1985 to 1992. It was also known under its sponsored names of the Simod Cup from 1987 to 1989 and the Zenith Data Systems Cup from 1989 to 1992....

. He remained with Chelsea until 1992, when he was sold to Southampton
Southampton F.C.
Southampton Football Club is an English football team, nicknamed The Saints, based in the city of Southampton, Hampshire. The club gained promotion to the Championship from League One in the 2010–2011 season after being relegated in 2009. Their home ground is the St Mary's Stadium, where the club...

 for £750,000 just 3 months after signing a new 5 year contract with Chelsea.

Monkou's time with Southampton saw regular battles for Premier League survival, though the club were never actually relegated. In the 1993–94 season
FA Premier League 1993-94
-New league sponsors:From the start of the 1993-94 season, the FA Premier League was sponsored by Carling Breweries.-Promoted teams:Newcastle United and West Ham were promoted to the Premier League from the First Division as champions and runners-up respectively. The last promotion place was won by...

 he scored a last minute winner in a 5–4 defeat of Norwich City
Norwich City F.C.
Norwich City Football Club is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. As of the 2011–12 season, Norwich City are again playing in the Premier League after a six-year absence, having finished as runner up in the Championship in 2010–11 and winning automatic promotion.The...

 from a Matt Le Tissier corner which helped the club to stay in the Premier League. He stayed on the South Coast until 1999, when he joined Huddersfield Town
Huddersfield Town F.C.
Huddersfield Town Football Club is an English football club formed in 1908 and based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire. They currently play in League One...

 on a free transfer, scoring once against Yorkshire rivals Barnsley. However, disagreements with Huddersfield manager Steve Bruce
Steve Bruce
Stephen Roger "Steve" Bruce is an English football manager and former player. Born in Corbridge, Northumberland, he was a promising schoolboy footballer but was rejected by a number of professional clubs. He was on the verge of quitting the game altogether when he was offered a trial with Gillingham...

 ensured his time with the club was short-lived. Monkou made a return to Chelsea during the 2002–2003 season, before finally retiring from the game

After his playing career, Monkou ran a pancake house in the Dutch city of Delft
Delft
Delft is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland , the Netherlands. It is located between Rotterdam and The Hague....

 (2009), and is actively involved in Dutch media as well as making appearances on Chelsea TV.

Monkou's cousin is Arsenio Halfhuid
Arsenio Halfhuid
Arsenio Amerencio Halfhuid is a Dutch professional footballer who currently plays for HBS Craeyenhout. Somewhat unusually, Halfhuid can play either as a central defender or a striker after being used in the latter role by Aston Villa youth team coach Tony McAndrew...

 and currently plays in the Aston Villa F.C. Reserves and Academy
Aston Villa F.C. Reserves and Academy
Aston Villa Reserves are the reserve team of Aston Villa, they have been part of the FA Premier Reserve League since its foundation in 1999 and are current holders of the Premier Reserve League South title. The team plays its home games at Villa Park - during the months of Autumn and Spring - and...

 teams.

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