Lille and the Portuguese Connection
Portuguese champions with LOSC in 2020/21
Félix Correia (24) has signed with LOSC Lille until 2029, extending the club’s longstanding tradition of recruiting Portuguese talent.
The winger, who arrives from Gil Vicente, had the chance to gather information about the club from fellow countryman and current teammate Tiago Santos, who turns 23 on July 23.
Set to become the 14th Portuguese player to represent LOSC this century?
While Lille’s very first Portuguese players—Pedro de Figueiredo and Victor Da Silva—arrived in the late 1980s, the connection really began to take shape in the 2010s. Ricardo Costa made a brief 10-match spell in 2010, followed by Rony Lopes in 2014, but things accelerated from 2017 onwards.
The Luis Campos effect
This shift coincided with the arrival of Luis Campos as sporting advisor in 2017. His influence ushered in a new era, not only on the pitch but also on the coaching bench. Portuguese-speaking staff became common at the club: João Sacramento (assistant and then interim head coach from 2017–2020), Jorge Maciel (assistant 2020–23), Paulo Fonseca (head coach 2022–24), Paulo Ferreira (assistant 2023–24), Nuno Santos (goalkeeping coach 2017–20), and Tiago Leal (assistant 2022–24).
As a result, LOSC have had more Portuguese players than any other Ligue 1 McDonald’s club over the past decade. Three currently feature in the first team: André Gomes, Tiago Morais, and Félix Correia. The latter is set to become the 14th Portuguese national to feature for Lille in the 21st century—and the 13th since the 2015/16 season—once he makes his Ligue 1 debut.
Rafael Fernandes, a defender signed from Arouca in January 2024 but plagued by injuries, could soon follow if he features in the league for the first time.
Beyond Portugal: scouting the Liga
Lille’s in-depth knowledge of the Portuguese market has also led them to recruit non-Portuguese players from Liga Portugal. Reinildo (from Belenenses, 2019), who played a key role in the 2021 title-winning side, was one such example. Others include Jean Onana (Leixões), dual national Edgar Ié (Belenenses), Léo Jardim (Rio Ave), and most recently, Alexsandro.
The Brazilian centre-back was signed from second-tier Chaves in 2022, after being named in the Liga Portugal 2 Team of the Season. His rise has been remarkable: from Portuguese second division to a Brazil national team call-up in just three seasons.
2021: A very Portuguese title
The most striking symbol of LOSC’s successful Portuguese strategy remains the 2020/21 title-winning campaign. That side included four Portuguese players: José Fonte, Renato Sanches, Tiago Djaló, and Xeka. Reinildo, though Mozambican, had also been recruited from the Portuguese league.
This Portuguese backbone is reminiscent of Paris Saint-Germain’s 2024/25 Ligue 1 title win—built around João Neves, Nuno Mendes, Vitinha and Gonçalo Ramos—all brought in under Luis Campos.
Correia’s Ligue 1 McDonald’s connections
Félix Correia brings not only pedigree but familiarity. A former Portugal U19 international, he faced several future Ligue 1 stars at youth level. In June 2019, for example, he faced France’s U18s, featuring Lucas Chevalier and Bafodé Diakité.
He also played alongside current PSG trio Nuno Mendes, Gonçalo Ramos, and Vitinha—most notably in the final of the 2019 UEFA U19 Euro, which he reached with Ramos and Vitinha.
His club career has also seen him cross paths with future Ligue 1 players. At AZ Alkmaar (2019/20), he shared a dressing room with Toulouse’s Zakaria Aboukhlal, and later played with former OM and Dijon man Marley Aké at Juventus U23.
