{"id":2000113180,"date":"2026-05-26T18:09:59","date_gmt":"2026-05-26T16:09:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/?p=2000113180"},"modified":"2026-05-26T18:13:08","modified_gmt":"2026-05-26T16:13:08","slug":"rwandan-defender-darryl-nkulikiyimana-signs-first-pro-deal-with-standard-de-liege","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/rwandan-defender-darryl-nkulikiyimana-signs-first-pro-deal-with-standard-de-liege\/","title":{"rendered":"Rwandan defender Darryl Nkulikiyimana signs first pro deal with Standard de Li\u00e8ge"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The club announced the signing on Tuesday, May 26, 2026, as part of a group of new contracts awarded to players in its youth setup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nkulikiyimana, 21, is also a player for Rwanda\u2019s national football team, Amavubi. The contract marks a major milestone in his career, becoming his first as a professional footballer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a statement published on social media, Standard de Li\u00e8ge said the central defender earned the deal following strong performances during the 2025\/26 season with the club\u2019s Under-23 side, SL16 FC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDarryl Nkulikiyimana has signed as a professional player. The 21-year-old defender earned this reward after the hard work he showed throughout the season with the Under-23 team, receiving a contract for next season with an option for an extension,\u201d the club said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reacting to the announcement, Nkulikiyimana expressed his excitement, describing the contract as the result of perseverance and hard work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cToday I signed my contract, feeling happy and proud. It comes after dedication and hard work through difficult moments. This is a new beginning. Thanks be to God,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/div>
<\/div>
<\/div><\/div><\/div>
<\/div>
<\/path><\/g><\/g><\/g><\/svg><\/div>
View this post on Instagram<\/div><\/div>
<\/div>
<\/div>
<\/div>
<\/div><\/div>
<\/div>
<\/div><\/div>
<\/div>
<\/div>
<\/div><\/div><\/div>
<\/div>
<\/div><\/div><\/a>

A post shared by SL16 Football Campus (@sl16_footballcampus)<\/a><\/p><\/div><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n\n

Nkulikiyimana made his international debut for Amavubi in late 2025, earning caps against Zimbabwe and South Africa during the qualifiers for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 21-year-old centre-back spent his early development years within Standard de Li\u00e8ge’s youth system before a stint at FCV Dender EH, where he made the senior matchday squad in early 2025. He returned to Standard de Li\u00e8ge in August 2025, immediately establishing himself as a defensive pillar for the U23 side, clocking over 2,000 minutes across 26 appearances during the 2025\/26 campaign.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also handed a professional contract was 18-year-old Congolese striker Kelyan Kielo-Lezi.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Nkulikiyimana spent his formative years in the youth ranks of Standard de Li\u00e8ge.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Darryl Nkulikiyimana plays as a central defender.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Nkulikiyimana, 21, is also a player for Rwanda\u2019s national football team, Amavubi. The contract marks a major milestone in his career, becoming his first as a professional footballer.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
Standard de Li\u00e8ge said the central defender earned the deal following strong performances during the 2025\/26 season with the club\u2019s Under-23 side, SL16 FC.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Rwandan defender Darryl Nkulikiyimana has signed his first professional contract with Belgian top-flight side Standard de Li\u00e8ge, joining the club\u2019s Under-23 team on a one-year deal with an option to extend.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":131,"featured_media":2000113187,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[151,69],"byline":[170],"hashtag":[],"class_list":["post-2000113180","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sports","tag-editors-choice","tag-homehighlights","byline-igihe"],"bylines":[{"id":170,"name":"IGIHE","slug":"igihe","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":8}],"contributors":[{"id":170,"name":"IGIHE","slug":"igihe","description":"","image":{"id":0,"url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&f=y&r=g","alt":"Default avatar","title":"Default avatar","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","sizes":[]},"user_id":8}],"featured_image":{"id":2000113187,"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/MixCollage-26-May-2026-06-12-PM-1901.jpg","alt":"","caption":"","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","width":1000,"height":700,"sizes":{"thumbnail":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/MixCollage-26-May-2026-06-12-PM-1901.jpg","width":150,"height":105},"medium":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/MixCollage-26-May-2026-06-12-PM-1901.jpg","width":300,"height":210},"medium_large":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/MixCollage-26-May-2026-06-12-PM-1901.jpg","width":768,"height":538},"large":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/MixCollage-26-May-2026-06-12-PM-1901.jpg","width":1000,"height":700},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/MixCollage-26-May-2026-06-12-PM-1901.jpg","width":1000,"height":700}}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000113180","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/131"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2000113180"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000113180\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2000113186,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000113180\/revisions\/2000113186"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2000113187"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2000113180"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2000113180"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2000113180"},{"taxonomy":"byline","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/byline?post=2000113180"},{"taxonomy":"hashtag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hashtag?post=2000113180"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}