Saël Kumbedi called up to France squad replacing injured Pierre Kalulu, Digi Mart USA News: Saël Kumbedi has been called up for the first time to join the France football squad at its gathering on Monday, replacing Pierre Kalulu, who is injured in his hamstrings.
Defender Pierre Kalulu, who suffered a hamstring injury, has been ruled out of both France matches in the UEFA Nations League against Italy and Turkey, scheduled for Thursday in Milan and Sunday in Bordeaux. The French coaching staff announced Monday that Kalulu has been replaced on the list by Kumbedi.
The France staff said that following Kalulu’s match the previous day and examinations carried out in close collaboration with his club, Juventus Turin, Kalulu has a hamstring injury to his left lower limb. He is therefore unavailable for the squad and will remain in Turin for treatment.
With first-choice right-back Jules Koundé also unavailable through injury, Juventus defender Kalulu (26 years old, 5 caps) has been replaced in the 23-player list by young Saël Kumbedi (21 years old). Kumbedi plays for Wolfsburg in the German Bundesliga 2 and had previously been selected with the France Espoirs (under-21 team).
Kumbedi, born in Stains in the Seine-Saint-Denis department, was trained at Le Havre before breaking into Ligue 1 with Olympique Lyonnais in 2022.
After three wins and one draw in four matches, Zinédine Zidane’s France team leads Group A of the Nations League and is well positioned to qualify for the quarterfinals ahead of its final two fixtures against Italy and Turkey.
