Félix Correia perpetuates Lille's Portuguese tradition
Up in the Hauts-de-France region, with the brisk, fresh weather, the flat landscape, the distinctive architecture, and the Belgian influence, you can feel a world away from the Iberian peninsula, but Lille is a place that so many Portuguese players have called home, including their newest recruit, Félix Correia.
Elite development, few chances
At just 24, Correia has already experienced stints at elite clubs in three countries. Having come through at Sporting CP, he was quickly spotted by Manchester City, who signed him back in 2019. However, by 2020, he was already on the way out of England, joining Juventus on a permanent deal.
Whilst he spent four years at the Serie A giants, he made just one professional appearance. Game-time prospects were limited for the Portuguese forward, the pathway to the first-team blocked, and his career in limbo. Loan spells at Parma and Marítimo didn't provide the breakthrough as Correia endured what was a tumultuous start to a career that had great premise.
3⃣ G+A by Correia
2️⃣ assists by Fernández-Pardo
They are ON FIRE! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/lTL65dtOyq— Ligue 1 English (@Ligue1_ENG) October 26, 2025
But the breakthrough did come and it came back in his native Portugal with Gil Vicente. After an initial loan move, he made the move permanent back in 2024. 37 games, 10 goals and five assists later and he was on the move once again, this time to Lille.
Following in the footsteps of Lille's portuguese greats
Arriving for a reported fee of €7m and signing a four-year deal, Correia is looking to make his mark, as so many of his compatriots have. There is quite the lineage of Portuguese players at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy.
It was José Fonte who lifted the Ligue 1 McDonald's title with Les Dogues back in 2021. It was Luís Campos, now the sporting director at PSG who put together that title-winning side, with the likes of Renato Sanches, Rafael Leao, and Tiago Djaló all making their mark with LOSC in recent seasons.
With compatriots André Gomes and Tiago Santos already at the club, Correia quickly found his feet, netting three assists in his first three Ligue 1 McDonald's matches, however, he was made to wait for his first goal.
"I am very happy that he managed to get his first goal because I know that that started to weigh on him a bit. He deserved it," said Bruno Génésio after Correia's brace against Metz on Sunday.
Correia "walking again" at Lille
His teammate, Matias Fernandez-Pardo added, "He has adapted well. He is a player who has a great pass on him and who is very intelligent. Félix takes lots of risks in his own way. He does it with a pass, I do it more by dribbling and that makes us two different but complimentary profiles for the team."
For LOSC president, Olivier Létang, this could be Correia's moment. "Félix was a talent, he fell, he got back up, he fell again, then he walked again and everything that he has been through will make him stronger," he said.
Correia, who says that the "instability" at the start of his promising career made him "grow, as a player and as a person", may now have found a home at a club where so many of his compatriots have too.
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