Background and career
Nicolas Julio Nkoulou Ndoubena (born 27 March 1990) is a Cameroonian former professional footballer who played as a centre-back.
Nkoulou began his career in the French league with Monaco, where he spent three years before signing for Marseille in 2011. With Marseille, he won his first senior trophy, the Coupe de la Ligue in the 2011–12 season. In 2016, he left Marseille for Lyon, but after a disappointing year he left to join Italian club Torino, initially on loan but later on a permanent basis. Though initially impressing, he fell out of favour, and left the club in 2021, and signed for English club Watford that same year.
Internationally, Nkoulou played 75 times for Cameroon between 2008 and 2017, and decided to retire shortly after winning the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations, scoring the equalising goal in the final. He represented Cameroon in three World Cups and three Africa Cup of Nations. In September 2022, he was called up to the national team for the first time after 5 years. He then acquired eight more appearances for his country until 2023.
