Saël Kumbedi

Saël Kumbedi
Kumbedi with Lyon in 2025
Personal information
Full name Saël Kumbedi Nseke
Date of birth (2005-03-26) 26 March 2005
Place of birth Stains, France
Height 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)[1]
Position Right-back
Team information
Current team
 VfL Wolfsburg
Number 26
Youth career
2015–2018 Paris Saint-Germain
2018–2019 CC Taverny
2019–2022 Le Havre
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2021–2022 Le Havre B 9 (0)
2021–2022 Le Havre 6 (0)
2022–2024 Lyon B 6 (0)
2022–2025 Lyon 52 (0)
2025 → VfL Wolfsburg (loan) 9 (0)
2026– VfL Wolfsburg 17 (0)
International career‡
2021–2022 France U17 15 (2)
2022–2023 France U18 7 (3)
2023–2024 France U19 17 (0)
2024–2025 France U20 6 (0)
2024– France U21 7 (0)
Medal record
Men's football
Representing  France
UEFA European Under-19 Championship
Runner-up2024 Northern Ireland
UEFA European Under-17 Championship
Winner2022 Israel
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 16 August 2026
‡ National team caps and goals as of 26 March 2026

Saël Kumbedi Nseke (born 26 March 2005) is a French professional footballer who plays as a right-back for German 2. Bundesliga club VfL Wolfsburg.[2]

Club career

A former youth academy player of Paris Saint-Germain and CC Taverny, Kumbedi joined Le Havre in 2019.[3] He made his senior team debut for the club on 13 November 2021 in a 2–0 cup win against Vierzon.[4]

Olympique Lyon

On 31 August 2022, Kumbedi signed a three-year contract with Olympique Lyon until June 2025.[5]

VfL Wolfsburg

On 28 August 2025, Kumbedi moved to Bundesliga side VfL Wolfsburg on a one-year loan deal with an option to buy for €6 million.[6] On 22 December, Wolfsburg triggered the purchase option, making Kumbedi a permanent signing.[7]

International career

Born in France, Kumbedi is of Congolese descent.[8] He is a French youth international. In April 2022, he was named in France under-17 team squad for 2022 UEFA European Under-17 Championship.[9] On 1 June 2022, he scored two goals in the final of the tournament in a 2–1 win against Netherlands.[10]

Career statistics

As of match played 24 August 2026[2]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] Europe Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Le Havre B 2022–23 National 3 90——90
Le Havre 2021–22 Ligue 2 2010—30
2022–23 Ligue 2 4000—40
Total 6010—70
Lyon B 2022–23 National 3 3000—30
Lyon 2022–23 Ligue 1 20020—220
2023–24 Ligue 1 17020—190
2024–25 Ligue 1 160104[b]0210
2025–26 Ligue 1 10000010
Total 5405040630
VfL Wolfsburg (loan) 2025–26 Bundesliga 9010—100
VfL Wolfsburg Bundesliga 150——150
2026–27 2. Bundesliga 2010—30
Total 17010—180
Career total 98080401100

Honours

Lyon

France U17

France U19

France U20

References

  1. ↑ "Saël Kumbedi". Olympique Lyonnais. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  2. 1 2 Saël Kumbedi at Soccerway
  3. ↑ "SAËL KUMBEDI NSÉKÉ : "QUAND TU REDESCENDS AVEC LA RÉSERVE, TU SENS QUE LES REGARDS SONT DIFFÉRENTS"". Retrieved 17 May 2022.
  4. ↑ "SAËL KUMBEDI NSÉKÉ, L'ARRIÈRE LATÉRAL PRÉCOCE DU HAC". Retrieved 17 May 2022.
  5. ↑ "Arrivée du défenseur Saël Kumbedi jusqu'au 30 juin 2025" (in French). Lyon. 31 August 2022. Retrieved 31 August 2022.
  6. ↑ "Saël Kumbedi prêté à Wolfsburg avec option d'achat". Olympique Lyonnais. 28 August 2025.
  7. ↑ "Kumbedi loan made permanent". VfL Wolfsburg. Retrieved 1 January 2026.
  8. ↑ "Vos talents : Saël Kumbedi, droit au(x) but(s)". Mairie d'Épinay-sur-Seine. 28 August 2022.
  9. ↑ "LES VINGT JOUEURS CHOISIS POUR L'EURO". 30 April 2022. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
  10. ↑ "France 2-1 Netherlands: French fight back to claim third U17 EURO title after Kumbedi double". 1 June 2022. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
  11. ↑ "PSG beat Lyon 2-1 to win French Cup final in Mbappe's farewell appearance". Reuters. 25 May 2024. Retrieved 25 May 2024.
  12. ↑ "Final: France 2–1 Netherlands: Line-ups". UEFA. Union of European Football Associations. 1 June 2022. Retrieved 2 June 2022.
  13. ↑ "2024 Under-19 EURO final highlights, report: Spain 2-0 France". UEFA. 28 July 2024. Retrieved 29 June 2025.
  14. ↑ "La France surclasse l'Arabie saoudite et remporte le Tournoi Maurice-Revello pour la 14e fois". L'Équipe (in French). Retrieved 24 August 2025.
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