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Paul Kalambayi

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Paul Kalambayi
Kalambayi after an AFC Wimbledon U18 match in 2016.
Personal information
Full name Paul Mbwebwe Mbiya-Kalambayi[1]
Date of birth (1999-07-09) 9 July 1999 (age 25)
Place of birth Dulwich, England
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)[2]
Position(s) Central defender
Team information
Current team
 Dagenham & Redbridge
Number 30
Youth career
Dulwich Village
Evolution Sports & Health Academy
2013–2015 Brentford
2015–2016 AFC Wimbledon
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2016–2024 AFC Wimbledon 88 (1)
2018 → Tonbridge Angels (loan) 7 (0)
2024– Dagenham & Redbridge 14 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 20:12, 23 October 2024 (UTC)

Paul Mbwebwe Mbiya-Kalambayi (born 9 July 1999) is an English professional footballer who plays as a central defender for National League club Dagenham & Redbridge.

Kalambayi is a product of the Brentford and AFC Wimbledon academies. He made his professional debut for AFC Wimbledon in 2017 and made 117 appearances during seven seasons as a senior player for the club. After his release in 2024, Kalambayi dropped into non-League football and transferred to Dagenham & Redbridge.

Career

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AFC Wimbledon

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Early years (2015–2018)

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After spells with Dulwich Village, Evolution Sports & Health Academy and Brentford,[3] Kalambayi joined the academy at League Two club AFC Wimbledon in 2015.[4] Despite being age 16, his rate of development saw him feature for the Development Squad before the end of 2015 and he was rewarded his first professional contract in February 2016.[4][5] During the remainder of the 2015–16 season, Kalambayi was an unused substitute on two occasions with the first team squad.[2] After the Dons' promotion to League One for the 2016–17 season,[6] he was named in the first team squad list and was an unused substitute during two of the season's matches.[2][7]

Kalambayi received his first call-up of the 2017–18 season as a substitute for an EFL Trophy group stage match versus Barnet and made his senior debut when he replaced Callum Kennedy after 66 minutes of the 4–3 victory.[8] He made one further EFL Trophy appearance during the season and spent a month on loan at Isthmian League Premier Division club Tonbridge Angels.[8][9]

Breakthrough (2018–2020)

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Kalambayi was named as the Development Squad captain for the 2018–19 season and his EFL debut came with a start in a 2–1 defeat to Portsmouth on New Year's Day 2019.[10][11] The match kicked off a run of five consecutive starting appearances before manager Wally Downes imposed a rest break on him.[2][12] Kalambayi made 19 appearances during the 2018–19 season and helped the Dons preserve their League One status on the final day.[11][13] He signed a new contract in June 2019 and was a near ever-present during the first four months of the 2019–20 season,[14][15] before rupturing ankle ligaments.[16] He returned to full training in March 2020,[17] but did not appear again during the truncated 2019–20 season.[15][18]

Later years and injuries (2020–2024)

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Following 19 appearances during 2020–21,[19] quadriceps and medial collateral ligament injuries disrupted Kalambayi's 2021–22 season,[20][21] restricting him to 16 appearances.[22] He scored his first senior goal of his career in a 5–3 EFL Trophy win over Portsmouth on 7 September 2021 and signed a new 2+1⁄2-year contract in January 2022.[22][23] Kalambayi made 32 appearances and scored two goals during the 2022–23 season,[24] before suffering a season-ending knee injury in March 2023.[25] He returned to match play in a behind closed doors friendly on 17 October 2023 and ended the 2023–24 season with seven appearances.[26][27] After making 117 appearances and scoring three goals during his seven seasons as a senior player with AFC Wimbledon,[28] Kalambayi departed the club when his contract expired at the end of the 2023–24 season.[29]

Dagenham & Redbridge

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On 14 June 2024, Kalambayi signed a two-year contract with National League club Dagenham & Redbridge on a free transfer.[30]

Personal life

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Kalambayi attended The Charter School.[31] He is of DR Congo descent.[32]

Career statistics

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As of match played 26 October 2024
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] League cup[b] Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
AFC Wimbledon 2015–16[2] League Two 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2016–17[33] League One 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
2017–18[8] League One 0 0 0 0 0 0 2[c] 0 2 0
2018–19[11] League One 17 0 1 0 0 0 1[c] 0 19 0
2019–20[15] League One 16 0 2 0 1 0 3[c] 0 22 0
2020–21[19] League One 14 0 0 0 1 0 4[c] 0 19 0
2021–22[22] League One 13 0 0 0 2 0 1[c] 1 16 1
2022–23[24] League Two 26 1 3 0 1 0 2[c] 1 32 2
2023–24[27] League Two 2 0 1 0 0 0 4[c] 0 7 0
Total 88 1 7 0 5 0 17 2 117 3
Tonbridge Angels (loan) 2017–18[34] Isthmian League Premier Division 7 0 — — — 7 0
Dagenham & Redbridge 2024–25[2] National League 15 0 1 0 1 1 0 0 17 1
Career total 110 1 8 0 6 1 17 2 141 4
  1. ^ Includes FA Cup
  2. ^ Includes EFL Cup, National League Cup
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Appearance(s) in EFL Trophy

References

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  1. ^ "EFL club list of registered players as at 20th May 2017" (PDF). p. 43. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Paul Kalambayi at Soccerway. Retrieved 2 July 2017.
  3. ^ "Academy Players Produced". Evolution Sports & Health Academy. Archived from the original on 30 August 2017. Retrieved 2 July 2017.
  4. ^ a b Slavin, Chris. "Paul commits to the club". Retrieved 2 July 2017.
  5. ^ "Paul set to face Southend". Retrieved 2 July 2017.
  6. ^ AFC Wimbledon at the Football Club History Database
  7. ^ "Squad numbers for 2016/17". Retrieved 2 July 2017.
  8. ^ a b c "Games played by Paul Kalambayi in 2017/2018". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 July 2017.
  9. ^ "Young Dons Defender Becomes An Angel For A Month". Pitchero Non-League. 9 February 2018. Retrieved 9 February 2018.
  10. ^ "Coaching tips had Paul ready for surprise call-up". www.afcwimbledon.co.uk. Retrieved 4 January 2019.
  11. ^ a b c "Games played by Paul Kalambayi in 2018/2019". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 9 November 2018.
  12. ^ "AFC Wimbledon set to hand new deal to impressive teen centre-back". South London News. 8 March 2019. Retrieved 10 March 2019.
  13. ^ "Bradford City 0–0 AFC Wimbledon: Dons survive after goalless draw". BBC Sport. 4 May 2019. Retrieved 4 May 2019.
  14. ^ "Home-grown Dons defender rewarded with new contract". AFC Wimbledon. 18 June 2019. Retrieved 18 June 2019.
  15. ^ a b c "Games played by Paul Kalambayi in 2019/2020". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 4 August 2019.
  16. ^ "Glyn backs young team to rise to the challenge against Oxford". www.afcwimbledon.co.uk. Retrieved 12 January 2020.
  17. ^ "Dons duo step up return to first team action". Retrieved 5 September 2020.
  18. ^ "League One & Two seasons ended early". BBC Sport. Retrieved 5 September 2020.
  19. ^ a b "Games played by Paul Kalambayi in 2020/2021". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 5 September 2020.
  20. ^ "Paul ruled out for a month after injury confirmed". www.afcwimbledon.co.uk. Retrieved 5 February 2022.
  21. ^ "Injury update on Paul Kalambayi". www.afcwimbledon.co.uk. Retrieved 5 February 2022.
  22. ^ a b c "Games played by Paul Kalambayi in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 14 August 2021.
  23. ^ "Paul signs new contract until 2024". www.afcwimbledon.co.uk. Retrieved 5 February 2022.
  24. ^ a b "Games played by Paul Kalambayi in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 31 July 2022.
  25. ^ "Squad update ahead of Barrow challenge". www.afcwimbledon.co.uk. Retrieved 23 April 2023.
  26. ^ "On the comeback trail! Defensive duo primed for return". www.afcwimbledon.co.uk. Retrieved 17 October 2023.
  27. ^ a b "Games played by Paul Kalambayi in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
  28. ^ Paul Kalambayi at Soccerbase
  29. ^ "Retained List 2023/24". www.afcwimbledon.co.uk. 29 April 2024. Retrieved 29 April 2024.
  30. ^ "✍️ Daggers Sign Paul Kalambayi". Dagenham & Redbridge FC. Retrieved 14 June 2024.
  31. ^ "Best ever GCSE results". www.charter.southwark.sch.uk. Archived from the original on 2 July 2017. Retrieved 2 July 2017.
  32. ^ Paul Kalambayi at WorldFootball.net
  33. ^ "Games played by Paul Kalambayi in 2016/2017". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 2 July 2017.
  34. ^ "Paul Kalambayi – Angels First Team". Tonbridge Angels Online. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
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