Randal Kolo Muani: French Striker, 2022 World Cup Final and Juventus Return

A header in the 92nd minute is the sort of thing that sends a footballer’s name to the top of search lists. On Thursday night in Vigo, Randal Kolo Muani came on as a substitute, met a cross from Andrea Cambiaso and gave Juventus a 2–1 Europa League win over Celta Vigo. The match was among the most-searched football stories in Ghana on Google Trends this week, and it is a good moment to look at a career that has included a World Cup final, a €75 million fee and a few disappointing seasons.

A Bondy boy with Congolese roots

Randal Kolo Muani was born on 5 December 1998 in Bondy, in the Seine-Saint-Denis area outside Paris, to parents born in Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo. He holds French and Congolese nationalities, and became French on 3 September 2008. In childhood he played for several Parisian clubs, including Villepinte, Tremblay and Torcy, and trained with the Italian clubs Vicenza and Cremonese, before he joined the Nantes academy in 2015, according to Wikipedia.

Nantes, a loan to Boulogne and a first trophy

His first senior call-up at Nantes came in February 2017, and he signed his first professional contract in June 2018. He made his league debut in a 3–0 Ligue 1 loss to Saint-Étienne on 30 November 2018. In August 2019 he went on loan to Boulogne in the third tier, scoring three goals and providing five assists before the season was cut short by the pandemic.

Back at Nantes in 2020–21, he scored nine goals and added as many assists in 37 league games, in a season where the club finished 17th and had to survive a relegation play-off against Toulouse. His goal in that tie helped them stay up. A season later, in 2021–22, he won his first trophy, the Coupe de France.

Frankfurt: 26 goals in a year

In March 2022 Eintracht Frankfurt signed him on a pre-contract agreement, a five-year deal that began when his Nantes contract ended. He scored his first Champions League goal in a 2–1 win over Marseille on 26 October 2022, and a week later scored the winner at Sporting CP that took Frankfurt into the knockout phase for the first time in the Champions League era. In February 2023 he scored his tenth Bundesliga goal against Werder Bremen, and in April he scored twice in 93 seconds in a DFB-Pokal quarter-final against Union Berlin.

In that first Bundesliga season he scored 15 league goals and provided 11 assists, third in the scoring chart and second in assists. Across all competitions he scored 26 in 50 games, was named to the Bundesliga team of the season, and was the DFB-Pokal’s top scorer, though Frankfurt lost the cup final.

The 2022 World Cup final

The most-replayed moment of his career came in December 2022. He had been called up to France’s senior squad in September and then replaced the injured Christopher Nkunku in the World Cup squad. In the semi-final against Morocco he scored his first international goal, a deflected shot from Kylian Mbappé’s pass, 44 seconds after coming on, one of the fastest substitute goals in World Cup history.

In the final against Argentina he won the penalty that Mbappé converted, and he scored in the shootout, which France lost 4–2. In the 123rd minute he had a one-on-one with goalkeeper Emiliano Martínez, who saved with his leg, a stop since described as a new “save of the century”. Kolo Muani spoke about it a couple of months later. He said he could have lobbed the keeper or squared the ball to Mbappé, but did not see him in the moment, and that “I still have it in my throat and it’ll be there for life.”

Paris Saint-Germain and a forgettable first year

In August 2023 Kolo Muani told Sky Germany that PSG had made a record offer and that he wanted to move to Paris. He then refused to train at Frankfurt and was left out of a match squad, and the club’s sporting director Markus Krösche condemned the behaviour. PSG signed him on 1 September 2023 for €75 million plus up to €15 million in bonuses, on a five-year contract.

It did not go to plan. He scored nine goals and added six assists in 40 games that season, a return most observers called underwhelming, and he said himself that he wanted to “quickly forget” it. PSG still won Ligue 1, the Coupe de France and the Trophée des Champions, and he is credited with Ligue 1 titles in 2023–24 and 2024–25.

Juventus, first time

On 23 January 2025 he joined Juventus on loan for the rest of the season. Within three Serie A games he had scored in each, starting with the only Juventus goal in a 2–1 loss to Napoli on his debut, then braces against Empoli and Como. By scoring in his first three Serie A games he matched a feat last achieved at Juventus by Roberto Baggio in 1990. He was named Serie A Player of the Month for February 2025.

Tottenham: a rough loan

In September 2025 he moved to Tottenham Hotspur on loan. Within a week of his Champions League bow, a training collision gave him a dead leg. In November he fractured his jaw in a collision with Harry Maguire in a draw against Manchester United and played for a short period in a protective mask. He scored his first Tottenham goals in a 5–3 Champions League loss to PSG on 26 November, and his first Premier League goal came on 22 February 2026 in a 4–1 defeat to Arsenal.

Back to Turin for good

On 2 August 2026, Juventus signed him permanently, announcing a fee of €38 million plus up to €12 million in bonuses. That is a long way below what PSG paid, which says a lot about how his value fell over three seasons.

The current season has brought the pay-off. Goal.com Ghana reports that on Matchday 2 of the Europa League group stage, Hugo Álvarez scored for Celta in the 18th minute, Nick Woltemade equalised, and Kolo Muani’s late header sealed the win. Coach Luciano Spalletti said: “We got the ball back into the box, played that through ball, and Kolo Muani was there at the right moment to finish it.” The same report says Pierre Kalulu made his 100th appearance for the club that night, and Juventus host Rennes in their next group game.

Playing style

Observers have compared him with Thierry Henry. Like Henry, he started out as a wide player known for pace and trickery before settling into the centre-forward role. At around 6’2″ with a rangy build, he combines quick acceleration with a languid dribbling style and strong control. France coach Didier Deschamps has described him as a player with presence who runs in behind from deep and finishes well, and Frankfurt’s Oliver Glasner praised his speed, tackling, dribbling and finishing.

International career since 2022

After the World Cup he scored his first goal for France since the final in a 2–2 draw in Greece in November 2023, and was in the squad for Euro 2024. In the round of 16 against Belgium, his shot was deflected into the net by Jan Vertonghen for the only goal. In the semi-final against Spain, he headed the opener from a Mbappé cross, although France lost 2–1. In October 2024 he scored his first international brace in a 2–1 Nations League win over Belgium, ending 2024 as France’s top scorer with six goals. His honours include the World Cup runner-up medal in 2022 and third place in the 2024–25 Nations League.

What to watch

With a permanent deal, and a stoppage-time winner in Europe, his season has started well. The open question is whether late impact turns into regular starts alongside Woltemade, who scored the equaliser in Vigo. His numbers at Frankfurt and in his first Juventus spell are the best case for giving him that run, while his first PSG season and the Tottenham loan, with its injuries, are the case against.

Sources

• Goal.com Ghana
• Wikipedia