Pierre Kazeye Rommel Kalulu Kyatengwa (born 5 June 2000) is a French professional footballer who plays as a defender for Serie A club AC Milan. Mainly a right-back, he can also play in central defence.[3]
![]() Kalulu playing for AC Milan in 2021 | |||
Personal information | |||
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Full name | Pierre Kazeye Rommel Kalulu Kyatengwa[1] | ||
Date of birth | (2000-06-05) 5 June 2000 (age 22) | ||
Place of birth | Lyon, France | ||
Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in)[2] | ||
Position(s) | Defender | ||
Club information | |||
Current team | AC Milan | ||
Number | 20 | ||
Youth career | |||
2007–2010 | Saint-Prest | ||
2010–2018 | Lyon | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
2018–2020 | Lyon B | 36 | (0) |
2020– | AC Milan | 48 | (2) |
National team‡ | |||
2018 | France U18 | 5 | (0) |
2018–2019 | France U19 | 12 | (0) |
2019 | France U20 | 3 | (0) |
2021– | France U21 | 12 | (2) |
2021 | France Olympic | 4 | (0) |
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 23:31, 18 September 2022 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 9 June 2022 |
Kalulu moved from his youth club AS Saint-Priest to the youth academy of Olympique Lyon in the summer of 2010. In Lyon, he passed through the different youth departments from 2010 to 2018 and was elevated to the 2nd team of Olympique Lyon in June 2018. For the home game against Amiens SC on 5 March 2020, Kalulu was called up for the first team of Lyon, but did not play in the match.[4]
In the summer of 2020, Kalulu moved to Italy to join AC Milan and signed a contract until 2025.[5] On 10 December 2020, he made his professional debut, playing the entire Europa League game against Sparta Prague as a left-sided centre-back; as Milan won 1–0, he was praised for helping the team keep a clean sheet.[6] Three days later, on 13 December 2020, Kalulu made his debut in Serie A, replacing the injured Matteo Gabbia in the fifth minute of a home game against Parma.[7] In the following away league game against Genoa played on 16 December 2020, he made his first ever start in Serie A and scored a debut goal in his senior career, equalizing the score in the eventual 2–2 draw.[8]
After an injury to Alessio Romagnoli, Kalulu started the match against Napoli on 6th of March 2022, partnering in central defence with Fikayo Tomori, helping Milan to clinch a 1–0 win, impressing against Napoli's talisman, Victor Osimhen.[9] On 12 March against Empoli, Kalulu scored his first goal of the season, a powerful curling shot from outside the box, as Milan managed to win 1–0 and stay top of the league.[10] With him and Tomori again in central defence, Milan kept clean sheets in two consecutive Serie A games for the first time in 2022.[11]
In addition to his French citizenship, Kalulu also holds the citizenship of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.[12] Since June 2018, he has played through the various national junior teams of France, taking part in the 2019 UEFA European Under-19 Championship.[citation needed]
Kalulu is the younger brother of footballers Aldo Kalulu and Gédéon Kalulu and is of Rwandan and Congolese descent.[13]
Club | Season | League | National Cup | Continental | Total | |||||
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Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
Lyon B | 2018–19 | Championnat National 2 | 17 | 0 | — | — | 17 | 0 | ||
2019–20 | Championnat National 2 | 19 | 0 | — | — | 19 | 0 | |||
Total | 36 | 0 | — | — | 36 | 0 | ||||
AC Milan | 2020–21 | Serie A | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4[lower-alpha 1] | 0 | 18 | 1 |
2021–22 | Serie A | 28 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 5[lower-alpha 2] | 0 | 37 | 1 | |
2022–23 | Serie A | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2[lower-alpha 2] | 0 | 9 | 0 | |
Total | 48 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 64 | 2 | ||
Career total | 84 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 100 | 2 |
AC Milan
A.C. Milan – current squad | |
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France men's football squad – 2020 Summer Olympics | ||
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