UEFA Champions League: Lille's Portuguese connection

Following their successful campaign in the play-offs, LOSC Lille will play in the League Phase of the UEFA Champions League for the first time since the 2021-2022 season, and they face a tough test in Sporting Club de Portugal as their opening fixture in Europe's elite competition. It will be the third encounter with Sporting, and their fourth trip to Portugal in European competition.

With that in mind, we've taken the opportunity to highlight the club's strong Portuguese connection in recent times. The nation that won the UEFA 2016 European Championship have marked the club from Northern France from the boardroom level, to the dugout and onto the pitch.

Even historically, Portuguese players have represented the club. Yet Forward Rony Lopes would be the first to make a sustained impact on the club, making 72 appearances and scoring 12 goals after joining from Premier League side Manchester City. Euro 2016 final goalscorer Éder would be the next notable player, scoring 13 goals in 51 appearances from 2016 to 2017.

Luís Campos's Portuguese legacy

In 2017 Luís Campos joined the club as a sporting director, and managed to bring some of Portugal's finest talents to the club following a successful spell at AS Monaco. Midfielder Xeka would join the club that same year, and he would go on to make 144 appearances for Les Dogues, including a league-winning season under Christophe Galtier. José Fonte would be part of the same winning side, alongside Rafael Leao and Renato Sanches. Leao made 26 appearances and scored eight goals for Les Dogues before moving to current club AC Milan.

In December 2020, Campos would leave the club following a change of ownership, but Lille's connection with Portugal didn't stop there. A Campos signing in Angel Gomes was signed after showing promise at Braga, but it would not be until last season until the Englishman fully broke into the side managed by … Portuguese coach Paulo Fonseca.

Following spells with AS Roma, Shakhtar Donetsk, Braga and Porto, Fonseca would join Lille on a two-year contract in June 2022. In his first season, Les Dogues would qualify for the Europa Conference League after finishing fifth in Ligue 1, before finishing fourth the following season and reaching the quarter-finals of the ECL (being knocked out by Premier League side Aston Villa on penalties). In Lille's current squad, Tiago Santos currently flies the Portuguese flag after signing in July 2023 from GD Estoril Praia and featuring heavily this campaign down the right side.

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