DR Congo right back Gédéon Kalulu moves to Cyprus

After spending his entire club career in France, DR Congo international right back Gédéon Kalulu completed his first move outside the country on Monday with confirmation of a transfer to Cypriot club Aris Limassol.

 

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The 27-year-old joins for an undisclosed fee from French Ligue 1 side Lorient, who Kalulu helped earn promotion to the top flight from Ligue 2 last season. Aris Limassol will begin their domestic league campaign on Saturday when they host city rivals Apollon after being eliminated from UEFA Conference League qualifying by Greek side AEK Athens last week.

Kalulu spent most of his career to date in the French second tier with Lorient and previous club AC Ajaccio. He joined Lorient ahead of the 2022-23 Ligue 1 season but endured relegation before helping the club back up to Ligue 1 for the current season. The native of Lyon graduated from the youth academy of Olympique Lyonnais and played for the club’s reserve team as well as spending a season on loan at third tier side FC Bourg-Péronnas.

However, Kalulu was not in the plans of Lorient coach Olivier Pantaloni and arrives at Aris with the objective of regular playing time. Kalulu is a regular for the DR Congo national team after debuting in a November 2020 friendly against Morocco. He played every minute for the Leopards at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations except for the third place game against South Africa that the DRC lost in a penalty shootout.

Now with the 2025 AFCON approaching in Morocco at the end of the year, Kalulu looks set to be in peak form and fitness if he can meet expectations and establish himself as a regular for Aris. Kalulu joins a sizable African contingent at Aris that includes former Nigeria national team defender Leon Balogun, Burkina Faso defender Steeve Yago and Comoros midfielder Yacine Bourhane among others.

Aris finished runners-up last season in the Cypriot top flight, finishing seven points behind champions Pafos FC.