LOSC appoint Génésio to replace Fonseca

LOSC Lille have announced that Bruno Génésio will replace Paulo Fonseca as head coach. The Portuguese leaves the northern side after two seasons at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy. In his first campaign, Fonseca guided Les Dogues to fifth place, despite the departure that summer of a raft of key players, including Amadou Onana, Renato Sanches and Zeki Çelik. In the current campaign, Lille finished fourth and also made a historic run to the quarterfinals of the UEFA Conference League, where they were eliminated on penalties by Aston Villa. In the league, the team finished fourth, securing a place in the UEFA Champions League for the first time since the 2021/22 season.

Speaking to LOSC's website, the club's president, Olivier Letang, emphasized the value and quality of Fonseca's contributions. "On behalf of all the directors of LOSC, I would like to thank Paulo for the work he carried out during the two seasons we've spent together, but also for the wonderful relationship established with him during these 24 months. The adventure was very beautiful professionally and humanly. I wish him much success with his future club."

Génésio will join Lille on a two-year contract, having been no stranger to success in his previous appointments in Ligue 1. The native of Lyon played professionally for his hometown side, Olympique Lyonnais, for the better part of a decade, helping them return to the first division. Following his retirement as a player, he worked as a scout before becoming an assistant to both Rémi Garde and Hubert Fournier. He would replace the latter in 2015, and impress, helping keep Les Gones in European football while also leading them to an historic UEFA Europa League semifinal in 2017.

Following a brief spell in China, he returned to France to take the reins at Stade Rennais in 2021, and led the Bretons to consecutive fourth place finishes, as well as the knockout rounds of European competitions in each of his two full seasons in charge. In addition to winning the 2022 Trophées UNFP Manager of the Year Award, Génésio was lauded for playing progressive football and helping establish Rennes at the top end of the table before being dismissed in November of 2023. Now, he'll hope to lead Les Dogues back into the Champions League, navigating the playoffs ahead of the return of Ligue 1 in August.

Letang underscored that this progressive play was a vital and attractive part of why they had moved quickly to bring in the veteran manager, "Bruno has great experience in football, both in Ligue 1 and in European competitions. He has achieved positive results with all of the teams he's trained. His vision, his working methodology and his management are fully in line with what we want."