Lille trace unlikely path towards French title

Paris Saint-Germain have claimed wins in Barcelona and Munich in the Champions League while leaving the door unlocked at home, giving Lille the chance of a first Ligue 1 title in a decade.

Lille stunned PSG in the capital last weekend, winning 1-0 to go three points clear of the reigning champions with seven matches remaining.

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PSG have lost eight times this season, while Monaco and Lyon are also within five points of Lille. It is an unpredictable title race, and the fact only the top three qualify for next season’s Champions League adds spice.

Lille’s operating budget is understood to be around a quarter of PSG’s, but shrewd buying and selling has taken them to where they are, along with an outstanding coach in Christophe Galtier.

After finishing second to PSG in 2019 they sold Nicolas Pepe to Arsenal for a reported €80 million.

In the last Ligue 1 season, curtailed due to the pandemic, they came fourth and then sold top scorer Victor Osimhen to Napoli for an initial €70 million.

Plenty more have left, but the knowledge of Luis Campos, a Portuguese super-scout who helped build Monaco’s title-winning team of 2017, allowed Lille to keep re-generating.