| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Carlos Noom Quomah Baleba | ||
| Date of birth | 3 January 2004 | ||
| Place of birth | Douala, Cameroon | ||
| Height | 1.79 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Brighton & Hove Albion | ||
| Number | 17 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2017–2022 | EF Brasseries du Cameroun | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2022–2023 | Lille B | 13 | (1) |
| 2022–2023 | Lille | 21 | (0) |
| 2023– | Brighton & Hove Albion | 64 | (3) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2024– | Cameroon | 8 | (0) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 19:14, 31 August 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 9 September 2025 | |||
Carlos Noom Quomah Baleba (born 3 January 2004) is a Cameroonian [1] professional footballer who plays as a central or defensive midfielder for Premier League club Brighton & Hove Albion and the Cameroon national team.
Carlos Noom Quomah Baleba was born on 4 January 2004 in Douala, Cameroon. [2] His father is a former professional footballer who played in South Africa and Cameroon. [1] He grew up in the neighbourhood of Akwa and is of Bassa descent. [1] Baleba started playing football at Futur Soccer FC in Douala and then joined École de Football des Brasseries du Cameroun academy centre at the age of 13. [1]
Baleba was transferred to Ligue 1 side Lille in January 2022, [3] [4] having already attracted the scouts of several other European clubs. [5] [6] Having arrived along with another youngster, Joffrey Bazié; the two Africans first joined Lille's reserve team, that played in Championnat National 3 that season. [5] [7]
Despite being in the matchday squad multiple times towards the end of the 2021–22 Ligue 1 season, Baleba's professional debut had to wait until the 2022–23 season where he would break into the first team of newly appointed manager Paulo Fonseca. [8] [9] [10]
Baleba made his professional debut for Lille on 7 August 2022, replacing Angel Gomes during a 4–1 Ligue 1 win against Auxerre. [11] [12] [13]
On 29 August 2023, Premier League club Brighton & Hove Albion announced the signing of Baleba on a five-year contract. [14] According to various reports, the financial details of the transfer include an initial and base fee of €27 million, a maximum of €3 million add-ons depending on sporting conditions and a 15% sell-on clause. [15] [16] [17] [18] Baleba made his debut for Brighton in a 3–1 home victory against Bournemouth on 24 September, coming on as a 73rd minute substitute for Mahmoud Dahoud. [19] On 8 October, Baleba made his first start for Brighton in a 2–2 draw against Liverpool. [20]
On 18 September 2024, Baleba scored his first goal in Brighton colours in a 3–2 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers in the third round of the EFL Cup. [21] Just over a week later on 28 September, Baleba scored his first league goal for the Seagulls in a 4–2 loss to Chelsea. [22] On 26 April 2025, Baleba scored an injury-time winner with a powerful shot outside the box in a 3–2 victory against West Ham United, which was later voted the Premier League Goal of the Month. [23] [24]
Baleba made his debut for the Cameroon national team on 8 June 2024 in a World Cup qualifier 4–1 victory against Cape Verde at the Ahmadou Ahidjo Stadium. He started the game and played 80 minutes. [25]
Known for his stamina, dribbling and passing range, Baleba is a complete and powerful central midfielder who can play in a box-to-box role or as a holding midfielder. He grew up idolising Paul Pogba, Kevin De Bruyne, Thiago Alcântara as well as former Lille players Nicolas Pépé and Idrissa Gueye. [1]
| Club | Season | League | National cup [a] | League cup [b] | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Lille B | 2021–22 | National 3 | 9 | 1 | — | — | — | 9 | 1 | |||
| 2022–23 | National 3 | 4 | 0 | — | — | — | 4 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 13 | 1 | — | — | — | 13 | 1 | |||||
| Lille | 2022–23 | Ligue 1 | 19 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 21 | 0 | ||
| 2023–24 | Ligue 1 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 21 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 23 | 0 | ||||
| Brighton & Hove Albion | 2023–24 | Premier League | 27 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 [c] | 0 | 37 | 0 |
| 2024–25 | Premier League | 34 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 1 | — | 40 | 4 | ||
| 2025–26 | Premier League | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 5 | 0 | ||
| Total | 65 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 82 | 4 | ||
| Career total | 99 | 4 | 9 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 118 | 5 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cameroon | 2024 | 5 | 0 |
| 2025 | 3 | 0 | |
| Total | 8 | 0 | |
Individual