Champions League Qualification: Lille-Fenerbahçe Preview

LOSC Lille will begin their UEFA Champions League qualification process when they face Turkish side Fenerbahçe SK in their first-leg game on Tuesday at Stade du Hainaut.

Lille finished fourth in Ligue 1 with 59 points last season under former manager Paulo Fonseca, who departed this summer for AC Milan. Les Dogues have also lost key players from the previous campaign, such as Leny Yoro, who is now at Manchester United.

Despite the changes from last season, Lille are counting on new faces to help them punch their ticket to the Champions League. Bruno Génésio, who has previously managed Olympique Lyonnais and Stade Rennais, is now on the sidelines for LOSC, taking over for Fonseca.

There are also arrivals to bolster the squad and help them advance past Fenerbahçe. Osame Sahraoui, Aïssa Mandi, and Thomas Meunier are new faces in the Lille squad that they'll be counting on in this matchup.

Jonathan David was Lille's top goal scorer last season, recording 26 goals and registering nine assists across all competitions. The Ligue 1 side will count on the Canadian forward to provide the goals to get them past Fenerbahçe.

Lille will have a challenging opponent in Fenerbahçe since they made a high-profile hire this summer as José Mourinho is now their manager. The Turkish side have also brought in new players that will help them against Lille like Youssef En-Nesyri and former AS Saint-Étienne player Allan Saint-Maximin.

The first leg will be on Tuesday, and the return leg will be on August 13th at Fenerbahçe Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadyumu. Lille last participated in the Champions League group stage in the 2021-22 season, when they reached the Round of 16, so Génésio and his team will be looking to end this two season absence.

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