Lynel Kitambala

Lynel Darcy Kitambala (born 26 October 1988) is a French footballer who currently plays as a winger for French club JS Saint-Pierroise.^[1]

Lynel Kitambala

Kitambala in 2016
Personal information
Full name	Lynel Darcy Kitambala
Date of birth	(1988-10-26) 26 October 1988 (age 36)
Place of birth	Creil, France
Height	1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Position(s)	Winger
Team information
Current team	Saint-Pierroise
Youth career
1999–2000	US Thiverny
2000–2002	FC Creil
2002–2003	US Pont Sainte-Maxence
2003–2004	Clairefontaine
2004–2008	Auxerre
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2008–2010	Auxerre	8	(0)
2009–2010	→ Dijon (loan)	34	(13)
2010–2011	Lorient	31	(6)
2011–2014	Saint-Étienne	16	(0)
2012–2013	→ Dynamo Dresden (loan)	17	(2)
2013–2014	→ Auxerre (loan)	29	(2)
2014–2015	Sporting Charleroi	29	(5)
2015	Levski Sofia	7	(0)
2015–2016	Union SG	8	(2)
2017–2018	Apollon Smyrni	3	(0)
2018	Senica	8	(5)
2019	Farense	7	(1)
2019–	Saint-Pierroise
International career
2010	France U20	5	(4)
2009–2010	France U21	4	(1)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 21:39, 3 June 2019 (UTC)

Personal life

Kitambala was born in Creil, France. He holds both French and DR Congolese nationalities.^[2]

Career

After playing for four other youth clubs in France, Kitambala finished his formation with Auxerre. After he was named on the bench for Auxerre's six games during 2007–08 season, he made his first team debut in a 0–0 home draw against Valenciennes on 1 November 2008, coming on as a substitute for Dennis Oliech.

In July 2009, Kitambala joined Ligue 2 club Dijon on a season-long loan deal.

On 20 August 2010, Kitambala signed a contract with Lorient,^[3] for an undisclosed fee thought to be in the region of €1.5 million. He made his debut at Stade du Moustoir on 28 August, and scored the second goal in a 2–0 win over Lyon. On 25 September, Kitambala scored a goal in the 89th minute against Monaco, securing a 2–1 victory for Lorient. He ended the season with 8 goals in all competitions.

On 31 August 2011, Kitambala signed with Saint-Étienne for a reported fee of €2.5 million. He made his debut for the club on 10 September, in a 3–1 home loss against Lille, coming on as an 85th-minute substitute for Laurent Batlles. He made only nine league starts throughout the season, in contrast to 24 starts he made in the previous season while at Lorient. In an attempt to earn some playing time, Kitambala spent the 2012–13 season on loan in the German 2. Bundesliga, where he played for Dynamo Dresden.

On 14 September 2015, Kitambala signed a two-year contract with Bulgarian side Levski Sofia.^[4]

In February 2019, he moved to Farense.^[5]

Career statistics

As of match played 16 December 2017^[6]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National Cup		League Cup		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Auxerre	2008–09	Ligue 1	8	0	0	0	0	0	—		8	0
Dijon (loan)	2009–10	Ligue 2	34	13	0	0	2	1	—		36	14
Auxerre II	2010–11	CFA	1	1	—		—		—		1	1
Lorient	2010–11	Ligue 1	27	6	4	1	2	1	—		33	8
	2011–12		4	0	0	0	1	0	—		5	0
	Total		31	6	4	1	3	1	0	0	38	8
Lorient II	2010–11	CFA	2	0	—		—		—		2	0
Saint-Étienne	2011–12	Ligue 1	16	0	0	0	1	0	—		17	0
Saint-Étienne II	2011–12	CFA	5	1	—		—		—		5	1
	2012–13		1	0	—		—		—		1	0
	Total		6	1	—		—		—		6	1
Dynamo Dresden (loan)	2012–13	2. Bundesliga	17	2	1	0	—		—		18	2
Auxerre (loan)	2013–14	Ligue 2	29	2	3	2	2	0	—		34	4
Auxerre II (loan)	2013–14	CFA	2	1	—		—		—		2	1
Sporting Charleroi	2014–15	Pro League	28	5	4	0	—		—		32	5
Levski Sofia	2015–16	A Group	7	0	2	0	—		—		9	0
Union SG	2015–16	Second Division	8	2	0	0	—		—		8	2
Apollon Smyrni	2017–18	Superleague Greece	11	0	1	1	—		—		12	1
Career total			200	33	15	4	8	2	0	0	223	39