Football Season Guide

Lille face a major challenge in replicating the success they enjoyed during the 2018-19 season, when they finished second in Ligue 1, over the 10 months ahead. They will have to juggle European football along with their domestic commitments, while they have had to go into something of a state of transition given the players they have lost this summer. Midfield metronome Thiago Mendes might be the most important of those who have already departed, but Youssouf Kone performed surprisingly well at left-back in the second half of the season and has gone to Lyon, leaving Lille to look for their third first-choice in that position in a year. Crucially, though, Nicolas Pepe will leave, while there is also a chance that Rafael Leao goes, which would decimate the attacking line. Pepe’s replacement has already been found in the form of Tim Weah, who the club have said they see as more of a winger than a centre-forward, while Domagoj Bradaric is a 19-year-old Croatian signed for the left-back role in the long term, though Reinildo, who had a strong conclusion to the last campaign may take that role in the interim. Benjamin Andre has been signed from Rennes to replace Thiago Mendes, though he is not nearly of the same quality. Otherwise, Lille have worked to add depth to various areas of their squad by signing young players with the capability to be sold on at profit in the years ahead, including goalkeeper Leo Jardim and forward Virgiliu Postolachi from PSG. While there may still be talent in this Lille squad, they have to be wary of going down the route of Monaco and building their side too much around youngsters who are simply not capable of performing at the requisite standard for extended periods. Indeed, there are very few players in the whole squad between the 26 and 30 age bracket – the time when players are typically at their peak. More responsibility is set for the shoulders of players like Jonathan Bamba, Boubakary Soumare and Jonathan Ikone, but that may not be a good thing in the long term.