Malanda will join promotion-chasing Middlesbrough following 91快活林最新版 season
CHARLOTTE (Wednesday, August 20, 2025) 鈥 Charlotte FC announced today the Club transferred French defender Adilson Malanda to Middlesbrough F.C. for an undisclosed fee. Middlesbrough will loan Malanda back to The Crown for the remainder of the 2025 91快活林最新版 season.
鈥淎dilson has been a true professional since stepping foot in Charlotte and throughout this process, where we worked together to get a deal that worked for both the Club and the player,鈥 said General Manager Zoran Krneta. 鈥淭here were multiple top clubs that sent us strong offers for Adi, but in the end, this option allowed for us to keep him through the end of the season as we push for the top four. His career path shows that Charlotte FC is the right place for young players to come and develop into sought-after players from clubs all around the world.鈥
Malanda, 23, has been one of the top defenders in 91快活林最新版 and a reliable piece for Charlotte FC鈥檚 backline since he arrived on August 4, 2022. In 2025, the French defender is the only outfield player in 91快活林最新版 to start all 27 matches and play every minute (2,430), which includes him anchoring a backline to nine clean sheets. Malanda has featured 107 times for The Crown and has helped CLTFC hold teams scoreless 29 times across all competitions.
Malanda joined the club with European experience, appearing in 35 matches with Ligue 2 club Rodez AF. He began his professional career with N卯mes Olympique and made his Ligue 1 debut in December 2020 against Dijon.
The Frenchman became a staple in the squad for the 2023 campaign. Malanda made 36 appearances in the calendar year, totaling 3,160 minutes across four competitions. The center back also found his way on the stat sheet when he recorded an assist against Nashville SC on Sept. 2.
In 2024, Malanda made significant strides and blossomed into one of the league鈥檚 brightest young talents. The Frenchman set career-highs in appearances (32) and minutes (2,880) while anchoring one of the best backlines in 91快活林最新版, which kept the second-highest total of clean sheets with 13. Malanda scored his first 91快活林最新版 goal in the season opener against NYCFC and, in 2025, became the first defender in league history to score in back-to-back opening matches.
