Position: Defender
Height: 5-9
Born: June 1, 1998
Birthplace: Kedougou, Senegal
Previous Club: Columbus Crew 2
Pronunciation: muh-LOO
JUSTIN MALOU BIO
FC TULSA
2023
Defender Justin Malou was acquired via transfer from MLS’ Columbus Crew on December 13, 2022 for an undisclosed transfer sum.
2022 – COLUMBUS CREW 2 (MLS NEXT PRO)
Malou was initially selected by the Columbus Crew with the 27th overall pick in the 2021 MLS SuperDraft but opted to return to college for one final season before signing with the Crew in February of 2022.
In his lone season with Columbus Crew 2, Malou continued to dominate the opposition in the same manner that he did while at Clemson. Malou made 19 regular season appearances for Crew 2 and started all three of the club’s playoff matches, ultimately winning the inaugural MLS NEXT Pro Cup.
His 2022 statline leapt off the page, both from the center-back and right-back positions. Malou concluded the campaign with a 60% tackle win rate and proved the victor in 61% of all aerial duels. From a distribution perspective, Malou finished with an 89.9% pass accuracy mark, made even more impressive by his 71.1% long ball accuracy percentage. The Senegalese defender also paired his defensive stats with one goal.
COLLEGE
Malou was a five-year man at Clemson University from 2017-2021 after taking advantage of the bonus year offered to collegiate athletes due to the curtailed 2020 season. He totaled 90 appearances for Clemson with two goals and eight assists. As a senior, Malou was named Third-team All ACC and honored with an ACC All-Tournament Team accolade. In 2021, Malou was an NCAA national champion with Clemson and was named to the NCAA College Cup All-Tournament Team the same season. Top Drawer Soccer had Malou rated as its No. 42 overall player in 2021.
