Gédéon Tshingoma Kalulu Kyatengwa (born 29 August 1997) is a professional footballer who plays as a right-back for Ligue 2 club Lorient. Born in France, he plays for the DR Congo national team.

Gédéon Kalulu
Personal information
Full name Gédéon Tshingoma Kalulu Kyatengwa
Date of birth (1997-08-29) 29 August 1997 (age 27)
Place of birth Lyon, France
Height 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position(s) Right-back
Team information
Current team
Lorient
Number 24
Youth career
2002–2007 CO Saint-Fons
2007–2013 Lyon
2013–2014 Saint-Priest
2014–2015 Lyon
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2015–2019 Lyon B 49 (3)
2018–2019Bourg-en-Bresse (loan) 19 (1)
2019–2022 Ajaccio 85 (1)
2022– Lorient 29 (0)
International career
2020– DR Congo 16 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 3 July 2023
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 28 January 2024

Early life

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Kalulu was born in the 8th arrondissement of Lyon, France, and is Congolese by descent.[1] His father was born in Kabimba, Belgian Congo, and his mother in Likasi, Congo-Léopoldville. He acquired French nationality on 26 December 2000 through the collective effect of his parents' naturalization.[2]

Club career

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A youth product of Lyon, Kalulu signed his first professional contract with the club on 19 April 2017.[3] After a season on loan with Bourg-en-Bresse, Kalulu signed with Ajaccio on 24 July 2019.[4] He made his debut for Ajaccio in a 4–1 Coupe de la Ligue win over Valenciennes on 13 August 2019.[5]

On 3 June 2022, Kalulu signed a four-year contract with Lorient.[6]

International career

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On 22 September 2020, Kalulu was called-up by the DR Congo.[7] On 13 October 2020, he debuted for DR Congo in a 1–1 friendly tie with Morocco.[8]

On 27 December 2023, he was selected from the list of 24 Congolese players selected by Sébastien Desabre to compete in the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.

Personal life

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He is the brother of fellow professional footballers Partizan forward Aldo and A.C. Milan defender Pierre Kalulu, as well as Pau FC left-back Joseph Kalulu.[9]

References

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  1. ^ Bonnaud, Mickael (2 February 2017). "Gédéon Kalulu : " Je m'inspire de ce que fait Samuel Umtiti "". Olympique & Lyonnais.
  2. ^ "Journal officiel de la République française n° 0303 du 31 décembre 2000 - Légifrance" (PDF). legifrance.gouv.fr (in French). Retrieved 2 November 2023.
  3. ^ "Gédéon Kalulu signe un premier contrat pro de 3 ans avec l'OL". www.OL.fr.
  4. ^ "Mercato - Gédéon Kalulu vers l'AC Ajaccio". MaLigue2. 24 July 2019.
  5. ^ "Ajaccio vs. Valenciennes - 13 August 2019 - Soccerway". ca.soccerway.com.
  6. ^ "GÉDÉON KALULU, UN LÉOPARD CHEZ LES MERLUS" (in French). Lorient. 3 June 2022. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
  7. ^ "RD Congo : Six nouveaux chez les Léopards, mais pas Disasi" [DR Congo: Six new among the Leopards, but not Disasi] (in French). 22 September 2020. Retrieved 22 September 2020.
  8. ^ "Morocco vs. Congo DR - 13 October 2020 - Soccerway". Soccerway.
  9. ^ "Aldo Kalulu: Rwanda's first football superstar?". ESPN.com. 10 September 2016.
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