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Christopher Nkunku Extends Contract at Leipzig to 2026

France's Christopher Nkunku controls the ball during the UEFA Nations League soccer match between Croatia and France at the Poljud stadium, in Split, Croatia, Monday, June 6, 2022. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)
France's Christopher Nkunku controls the ball during the UEFA Nations League soccer match between Croatia and France at the Poljud stadium, in Split, Croatia, Monday, June 6, 2022. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)
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Christopher Nkunku Extends Contract at Leipzig to 2026

France's Christopher Nkunku controls the ball during the UEFA Nations League soccer match between Croatia and France at the Poljud stadium, in Split, Croatia, Monday, June 6, 2022. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)
France's Christopher Nkunku controls the ball during the UEFA Nations League soccer match between Croatia and France at the Poljud stadium, in Split, Croatia, Monday, June 6, 2022. (AP Photo/Darko Bandic)

France forward Christopher Nkunku extended his contract with Leipzig through 2026 on Thursday after a breakout season that attracted the attention of some of Europe's biggest clubs.

Leipzig technical director Christopher Vivell called Nkunku “one of the best players in the world” after the extension of his contract, which had two more years to go, The Associated Press said.

The 24-year-old Nkunku won the German Cup with Leipzig last season and scored 20 league goals as he was named Bundesliga player of the season. He also made his debut for France in March and has played all of his country's six games since then.

“RB Leipzig have made a name for themselves on the international stage in recent years and have shown time and again that we can compete for titles," Nkunku said in a statement. "We want to build on that going forward and go one step further.”

Nkunku's performances for Leipzig and France had led to speculation he could move to the Premier League or return to Paris Saint-Germain, where he came through the academy and played until his 2019 move to Leipzig.

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Flamengo Scores 3 Second-Half Goals to Stun Chelsea 3-1 at the Club World Cup

Flamengo's Bruno Henrique, left, celebrates after scoring during the Club World Cup Group D soccer match between Flamengo and Chelsea in Philadelphia, Friday, June 20, 2025. (AP)
Flamengo's Bruno Henrique, left, celebrates after scoring during the Club World Cup Group D soccer match between Flamengo and Chelsea in Philadelphia, Friday, June 20, 2025. (AP)
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Flamengo Scores 3 Second-Half Goals to Stun Chelsea 3-1 at the Club World Cup

Flamengo's Bruno Henrique, left, celebrates after scoring during the Club World Cup Group D soccer match between Flamengo and Chelsea in Philadelphia, Friday, June 20, 2025. (AP)
Flamengo's Bruno Henrique, left, celebrates after scoring during the Club World Cup Group D soccer match between Flamengo and Chelsea in Philadelphia, Friday, June 20, 2025. (AP)

Danilo scored the go-ahead goal in the 65th minute and Flamengo scored three second-half goals to move atop its group at the Club World Cup with a 3-1 victory over Chelsea on Friday.

Coupled with Esperance's 1-0 win against LAFC in the later group match, Flamengo became the first team in the field to advance to the knockout round.

Flamengo's win also kept South American teams undefeated at the Club World Cup in nine matches.

Pedro Neto gave Chelsea the early lead. The ball bounced off a Flamengo defender and Neto gained control, charging toward the goal before putting it away in the 13th minute.

Flamengo drew even in the 62nd on Bruno Henrique's goal on a tap-in in front of the goal. Moments later, the Brazilian giants took the lead off a corner with Danilo's goal.

Wallace Yan all but put the game out of reach for the Blues with a goal in the 83rd.

The Blues, the 2021 Club World Cup winner, defeated LAFC 2-0 in their opening match in Atlanta. Flamengo downed Esperance 2-0 in its opener.

Former Chelsea defender Filipe Luís currently coaches Flamengo, while former Chelsea midfielder Jorginho made his debut for Flamengo against Esperance.

Down just 2-1, Chelsea still had a chance, but Nicolas Jackson was sent off in the 68th with a straight red just four minutes after replacing Liam Delap, who got his first start for Chelsea after making his debut for the Blues in the tournament opener.

The Blues currently sit below Flamengo in Group D and can still advance to the knockout round. The final matches will be played Tuesday with Chelsea facing Esperance in Philadelphia and Flamengo meeting LAFC in Orlando, Florida.

Henrique was named the Man of the Match, and said the fact that there was a large contingent of red-clad Flamengo fans among the 54,019 at Lincoln Financial Field wasn't lost on him or his teammates in the pivotal second half.

“I noticed that we had the advantage. We had the fans on our side,” Henrique said. “And that's when we started to pressure.”