Who is Randal Kolo Muani? Everything you need to know about the French World Cup star
French striker Randal Kolo Muani made his name known on the biggest podium of all at the 2022 World Cup, coming on in the final against Argentina as he facilitated a 2-0 French comeback when he was substituted onto the pitch in the 40th minute .
Remarkably, French manager Didier Deschamps didn’t actually pick the striker in his original 26-man squad. However, an injury to Christopher Nkunku prior to the start of the tournament meant that Kolo Muani was called up as his replacement.
The 24-year-old also took advantage of the opportunity presented to him and scored his first international goal in the semi-final against Morocco. The finish made him the third-fastest player to score a goal as a substitute in World Cup history, the goal coming 44 seconds after he took the field.
Kolo Muani then made a big impact in the World Cup final against Argentina, giving France an attacking impetus they missed in the first half as the South Americans raced to a 2-0 win. His energy and struggle helped France take the game back to 2–2, winning an 80th minute penalty that Kylian Mbappe duly dispatched.
Indeed, he and Marcus Thuram replaced Ousmane Dembele and Olivier Giroud in the 40th minute of the game, bringing the game back to level.
However, Kolo Muani has only been part of France’s senior set for a short time, his first call-up to the squad not coming until September 2022. He made his first appearance against Austria but had to wait for his first start until he played against Tunisia on the World Cup.
Now with Eintracht Frankfurt in the Bundesliga, Kolo Muani originally started his career with Nantes, joining their youth academy in 2015. He signed his first professional contract three years later, before making his first team debut in November 2018 in a 3–0 loss. to Saint-Etienne in Ligue 1.
The Frenchman then spent a season on loan at Boulogne in the third tier of French football in the 2019/20 season.
His move to Eintracht Frankfurt came as he signed a pre-contract deal with the club in March 2022, pledging five years at the German side. He finally joined in the summer of 2022 and has been impressing in the Bundesliga ever since.
In 14 Bundesliga appearances, Kolo Muani scored five goals and assisted a further nine, as his two goals in the Champions League group stage helped his club progress to the knockout stages of the competition.
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