Thomas Meunier has completed a return to French football, signing for Lille after just five months with Trabzonspor. 

Meunier, who won the Ligue 1 title three times with Paris Saint-Germain during his four years at the Parc des Princes, has signed a two-year contract with Les Dogues.

The 32-year-old featured eight times for Borussia Dortmund this season after missing the start of the campaign through injury, before completing a move to Turkey in February. 

Meunier will provide experience for Bruno Genesio's side, who will compete in the Champions League this season following their fourth place finish in Ligue 1. 

"Lille was the perfect choice from a sporting and family point of view. With its proximity to Belgium, it's like being at home," Meunier said in a statement.

"My experience in the various European Cups will enable me to coach the youngest members of the dressing room and ensure that they're 100% focused on the club's sporting success."

Meunier becomes the French side's third addition this transfer window following the long-term arrivals of Ethan Mbappe and Ngal'ayel Mukau. 

Having allowed defender Leny Yoro to complete a reported £59.8million deal with Manchester United, Lille are expected to dive into the transfer market for further additions to their squad. 

Manchester United have announced the signing of highly rated 18-year-old centre-back Leny Yoro from Lille.

United are reported to have paid the French club an initial £52.2million (€62m), a fee that could rise to £58.9m (€70m).

The move, which is subject to registration, sees Yoro sign a five-year contract at Old Trafford, with the option for a further year.

"Signing for a club with the stature and ambition of Manchester United so early in my career is an incredible honour," Yoro said.

"Since my first conversations with the club, they set out a clear plan for how I can develop in Manchester as part of this exciting project and showed a lot of care for me and my family.

"I know about the history of young players at Manchester United and feel it can be the perfect place to reach my potential and achieve my ambitions, together with my new team-mates. I cannot wait to get started."

Yoro made just 46 appearances in Ligue 1, 38 as a starter, and had only a year remaining on his Lille contract, but Real Madrid were said to be keen on the exciting young defender.

So United, who have been looking to sign at least one centre-back in this transfer window, have made their move, pipping Madrid and other potential suitors.

Erik ten Hag's side have also been linked with moves for Jarrad Branthwaite and Matthijs de Ligt and could yet return to the market to further bolster their defence.

For now, United manager Ten Hag can look forward to pairing Yoro with Lisandro Martinez, who missed a large part of last season due to injury.

What will Yoro bring?

Martinez's absence impacted United's ability to play out from the back, having replaced long-standing goalkeeper David de Gea with Andre Onana in a bid to improve their build-up play.

Despite his inexperience, Yoro should be able to have an immediate impact in that regard, showing his ability on the ball last season as he completed 92.1% of his passes in Ligue 1.

Among United players to attempt multiple passes in the Premier League in 2023-24, only Martinez himself (92.2%) could top that mark.

Harry Maguire, who made more starts than any other centre-back (18) for an injury-ravaged team, trailed considerably in that metric, completing just 83.1% of his passes.

Yoro does not yet dominate physically like Maguire or Raphael Varane in a defensive sense, but he has been compared to the France World Cup winner by Lille's academy director Jean-Michel Vandamme.

Dan Ashworth, United's sporting director, said on Thursday: "He possesses every attribute needed to develop into a top-class centre-back."

Ethan Mbappe, the younger brother of Real Madrid and France star Kylian, has joined Lille on a free transfer after leaving Paris Saint-Germain.

The 17-year-old made five appearances for PSG across all competitions last term, making his senior debut against Metz last December.

He was expected to leave the Ligue 1 champions after his older brother sealed his long-awaited move to the Santiago Bernabeu, but he will stay in France with Lille.

The midfielder has signed a three-year contract with his new club, his first professional deal after he had played on a youth contract with PSG.

Speaking to the club's website, he said: "I am very happy to join LOSC. I look forward to starting this adventure and meeting my new team-mates, the staff, as well as the supporters. 

"For me, at my age, staying in France was the best option to progress. I think LOSC was the best project. It is one of the best in France. It's a real pride to be able to play here."

Paulo Fonseca has left Lille to be replaced by Bruno Genesio, ahead of his expected appointment as Milan head coach.

Fonseca joined Lille in 2022, having previously enjoyed spells with Porto, Braga, Shakhtar Donetsk and Roma.

He led them to a fifth-place Ligue 1 finish in 2022-23 then improved on that achievement by taking them into the top four last term, ensuring Champions League qualification.

However, he had been expected to leave the Stade Pierre-Mauroy and return to Serie A, with Milan reportedly hoping to appoint him as Stefano Pioli's successor.

That move appears closer after Lille announced the departure of their Portuguese coach on Wednesday, immediately naming former Lyon and Rennes boss Bruno Genesio as his replacement.

In a statement, Lille president Olivier Letang said: "It is a great pleasure to make the arrival of Bruno Genesio official.

"He has achieved positive results with all the teams he has coached. His vision, his working methodology and his management are totally in line with what we want.

"Bruno will allow us to continue the work we have started over the past two seasons, whether in terms of the game we have put in place, the ambition and our desire to always perform, the development of young talents, or more generally the evolution of LOSC."

Genesio was named Ligue 1 Manager of the Year in 2021-22, when his Rennes side finished fourth in Ligue 1 and scored 82 goals in 38 games. 

PSG were forced to put their Ligue 1 title celebrations on ice after second-placed Monaco overcame Lille on Wednesday.

Luis Enrique's side swept aside Lorient 4-1 after doubles from Ousmane Dembele and Kylian Mbappe, putting the pressure on the chasing Monaco.

Yet Youssouf Fofana's third league goal of the season edged Adi Hutter's team to a 1-0 victory, delaying PSG's inevitable title success – barring a miraculous collapse.

PSG, who also have a two-legged Champions League semi-final with Borussia Dortmund to come in May, are 11 points clear with just four top-flight games remaining.

Having lost just once in Ligue 1 all season, PSG would secure back-to-back top-flight crowns if they overcome Le Havre on Saturday at Parc des Princes.

Though victory appears likely against relegation-threatened Le Havre, the Parisians would still be crowned champions without victory if Monaco fail to win on their visit to Lyon the following day.

Given the clash with Dortmund comes just four days after meeting Le Havre, Luis Enrique may rest the likes Bradley Barcola, Marquinhos, Achraf Hakimi, Vitinha and Warren Zaire-Emery, as he did against Lorient.

While the title remains in PSG's hands, Monaco at least took a step closer to Champions League qualification with victory over Lille, sitting 10 points clear of fifth-placed Nice.

Emiliano Martinez was the unsurprising star of a dramatic penalty shootout as Aston Villa edged past Lille and into the semi-final of the Europa Conference League.

The Argentina goalkeeper, who helped his country win the World Cup 18 months ago, produced some similar heroics in France, saving spot-kicks from Nabil Bentaleb and Benjamin Andre to earn a 4-3 shootout win after the quarter-final had ended 3-3 on aggregate after two legs.

There was plenty of his trademark dark arts on show as he shushed the baiting French crowd, who had not forgotten what happened in Qatar, and then caused confusion by receiving a yellow card from the referee in the middle of the shootout, having already been booked in normal time.

But bookings are not carried forward into the shootout meaning he could stay on and send Villa into a first European semi-final since 1982.

They were not deserving of victory, though, as they were outplayed for the majority of the second leg in France, with goals from Yusuf Yazici and Andre overturning a 2-1 first leg advantage.

Matty Cash’s 87th-minute strike sent it to extra-time, with Martinez coming up trumps in the shootout to give boss Unai Emery an eighth successive European quarter-final victory.

The Spaniard, so prolific in the Europa League with Sevilla and Villarreal will be eyeing another European trophy.

Aston Villa boss Unai Emery knows his side have plenty of work to do in next week’s Europa Conference League quarter-final second leg in Lille.

Villa will travel to France with a 2-1 advantage thanks to first-leg goals from Ollie Watkins and John McGinn gave the on-looking Prince of Wales something to cheer about.

But Lille showed they are no pushovers and Bafode Diakite’s late header kept the tie alive after they had been repelled by an impressive performance from Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez.

Villa must now go to northern France next week and finish the job if they are to make their first European semi-final since they won the European Cup in 1982.

That will not be an easy task as the French football federation have postponed Lille’s Ligue 1 game this weekend to give them extra time to prepare and they have only been beaten once at home all season.

Emery, who celebrated his 1,000th game as a manager, said: “Difficult match, we are ready to play another 90 minutes, we played the first 90 minutes, we didn’t control the game like we wanted and defensively we were doing more work than we prepared for because we wanted to control the game with our positioning.

“With the respect we have got for them, they showed it.

“The result is tight, but more or less it was a fine for both teams. Now another 90 minutes, enjoy playing in Europe, enjoy playing a quarter-final.

“Be ready to play 90 minutes, even extra time, even a penalty shootout because now it is in this moment everything is difficult.”

Lille boss Paulo Fonseca, who almost took over at Newcastle and Tottenham in the last few years, felt Watkins’ goal should have been disallowed for a foul by Morgan Rogers on Ismally.

“I don’t understand what is going on, it was a foul on the first goal,” he said.

“I understand it is difficult for the referee with VAR it is just incredible they miss these things. It’s not good what is going on in football, the referees must look at what is going on in the moment.

“A lot of matches, it is not football, it is blocking like in basketball. The first goal was a clear foul, a clear block. Being physical is one thing, fouling is another.”

However, after the way they created chances at Villa Park, Fonseca knows the tie is very much alive.

“We created the opportunity to get a better result,” he added. “I’m satisfied with the courage of my players but at the end of the day, we’ve lost.

“I know that it’s difficult match, they’ve got great players, a great coach and a lot of experience so they have certain advantages but I must continue to believe it’s possible.”

Aston Villa earned royal approval as the Prince of Wales watched his beloved club beat Lille 2-1 in the first leg of their Europa Conference League quarter-final at Villa Park.

Goals in either half from Ollie Watkins and John McGinn saw Villa lead their first European last-eight tie since 1998 and give boss Unai Emery victory in his 1,000th match as a manager.

Prince William and his son Prince George celebrated the goals wildly but will have been concerned about what happened at the other end.

Bafode Diakite’s late header gave Lille a lifeline just as it looked like they would head home frustrated by Villa goalkeeper Emiliano Martinez, who had made a string of big saves.

Villa must now go to northern France next week and finish the job if they are to make their first European semi-final since they won the European Cup in 1982.

That will not be an easy task as the French football federation have postponed Lille’s Ligue 1 game this weekend to give them extra time to prepare and they have only been beaten once at home all season.

After an early scare, which required a vital intervention from Pau Torres to deny Hakon Arnar Haraldsson a tap-in following Diego Carlos’ error, Villa took command.

Lille boss Paulo Fonseca, perenially linked with a move to England, said in his pre-match press conference that his side would pay special attention to Watkins, but allowed him three quickfire chances.

The first came after Watkins capitalised on Leny Yoro’s dive and was denied by Benjamin Andre’s last-ditch tackle, with the England striker shooting straight at Lucas Chevalier from the resulting corner.

It was from another corner that Watkins did get on the scoresheet in the 13th minute, as he was left unmarked from McGinn’s corner to power home a header from close range, though Lille thought there was a foul by Morgan Rogers.

Only another last-ditch tackle from Diakhite denied Watkins a second after Douglas Luiz had played him in, but from the resulting corner Villa were almost stung on the counter-attack.

Former Tottenham and Newcastle midfielder Nabil Bentaleb’s ball fell to Edon Zhegrova at the far post and he looked primed to score until Martinez came out to smother the shot.

That gave Lille confidence and they looked a threat, with Martinez producing an almost identical stop to deny Diakhite after Haraldsson had set him clear.

Martinez was quickly becoming Villa’s key player and produced another block to keep his side in front after a misplaced pass from Rogers allowed Lille to break, although star man Jonathan David was unable to get his shot past the World Cup winner.

The half-time break proved welcome for Villa, who came out with a roar after the break and doubled their lead in the 56th minute.

It was another corner that did the job as Leon Bailey’s scuffed cross fell perfectly to McGinn, who stroked home delightfully from the edge of the penalty area.

Villa seemed in total control but Lille gave them a scare in the 63rd minute when Gudmondsson converted at the far post, only for VAR to decide he was narrowly offside.

Martinez again showed his quality with saves from Gudmondsson and Haraldsson but he was eventually breached in the 84th minute as an unmarked Diakite glanced home from a corner.

Lille boosted their top-three hopes in Ligue 1 with a 2-1 victory over Lens.

Edon Zhegrova’s double secured the points with Elye Wahi’s 78th-minute goal not enough for Lens, who stay just outside the top five.

In Spain, Cadiz claimed a vital win in their bid to avoid relegation from LaLiga.

Facing doomed Granada, Robert Navarro scored the only goal in the 51st minute of a 1-0 victory.

Kylian Mbappe was kept in reserve as Paris St Germain went 11 points clear at the top of Ligue 1 with 3-1 victory over Lille.

Defender Alexsandro had a night to forget at the Parc des Princes when, after Yusuf Yazici had given the visitors an early lead, he was robbed to allow Goncalo Ramos to level and then sliced the ball into his own net before Randal Kolo Muani cemented the win.

Mbappe was named only among the substitutes ahead of Wednesday night’s Champions League last 16 clash with Real Sociedad, as were Gianluigi Donnarumma, Achraf Hakimi, Marquinhos and Warren Zaire-Emery.

And Mbappe was not needed as Luis Enrique’s side eased to victory, with fourth-placed Lille indebted to goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier for keeping the margin of defeat respectable.

Mbappe’s presence on the bench as he nursed ankle injury did not come as a huge surprise despite Enrique’s insistence in the run-up to the game that he would be involved, but 37-year-old Keylor Navas’ inclusion in place of Donnarumma, his first appearance for the club since May 2022, did prompt raised eyebrows.

Navas’ evening got off to a bad start as Tiago Santos tricked his way past Lucas Beraldo and after Fabian Ruiz failed to deal with his cross, Yazici smashed the ball past the PSG keeper in the sixth minute.

The lead last barely four minutes as Alexsandro was caught in possession and Ousmane Dembele squared for Ramos to equalise.

Alexsandro’s evening was to take a further turn for the worse with just 17 minutes played as the home side started to find their feet.

Ramos sent the ball across the face of goal and when the visitors failed to deal with it, Fabian unleashed a speculative shot and the defender sliced an attempted clearance into his own net.

Lille might have fallen further behind in first-half stoppage time but for Chevalier’s instinctive save with his foot after Marco Asensio had run on to Dembele’s pull-back.

Asensio was guilty of a poor 51st-minute miss after robbing Nabil Bentaleb on the edge of the penalty area, and Chevalier came to Alexsandro’s rescue with a block from Nordi Mukiele after he had forced his way past the defender.

Edon Zhegrova saw a 58th-minute attempt deflected wide at the other end after Gabriel Gudmundsson and Angel Gomes had combined to set him up, but it took another superb save from Chevalier to keep out Kolo Muani’s 73rd-minute strike.

The striker did get his name on the scoresheet with 10 minutes remaining when substitute Bradley Barcola broke down the left and crossed for him to cement victory.

And Alexsandro’s misery was complete when he headed wastefully over when presented with a late chance to reduce the deficit.

A team from Martinique face a painful 4,000-mile journey home after crashing 12-0 at Ligue 1 side Lille in the Coupe de France on Saturday.

Golden Lion qualified for the tournament as reigning champions of the Caribbean nation, and were handed a daunting away trip to the six-time winners.

They were 7-0 down at half-time and mustered a single shot in comparison to 37 for the hosts, for whom Jonathan David and Edon Zhegrova helped themselves to hat-tricks.

The Coupe de France has been open to representatives of French departments and territories since the mid-1960s, and one-sided results are nothing new.

Golden Lion can seek solace in the fact that they performed better – and faced a shorter round trip – than French Guiana side CSC Cayenne, who were thumped 14-0 at Paris FC in 2021.

What the papers say

Dominic Solanke has emerged as a potential solution to Tottenham’s hunt for a striker. The Sun reports Spurs are watching the Bournemouth forward, 26, ahead of a summer signing.

Tottenham are also being linked with Belgium midfielder Arther Vermeeren, 18. According to The Sun, Spurs are willing to pay Royal Antwerp £25million in January with an agreement to loan him back for the rest of the season.

Jesse Lingard’s search for a new club has reached Lille, according to the Daily Mirror. But the 31-year-old former Manchester United midfielder, a free agent, could be restricted by a limit on French clubs signing players from outside the EU.

Manchester United are being linked with a move for Dutch striker Joshua Zirkzee, reports the Metro via Sport1. The 22-year-old, who is valued at £26m million, has scored seven goals in 17 games for Serie A side Bologna.

Social media round-up Players to watch

Raphael Varane: The former France defender, 30, is keen on a return to his first club Lens, according to L’Equipe in France.

Goncalo Inacio: Arsenal lead the race for the Sporting defender, 22, but Liverpool are also interested, reports Portuguese outleft A Bola.

Liam Kelly reflected on the “best moment” of his life after eventually making his Scotland debut in the 4-1 defeat by France in Lille on Tuesday night.

The 27-year-old Motherwell goalkeeper was first called up to the senior squad four years ago and had to patiently await his chance, which came when Steve Clarke rested number one Angus Gunn and started with Kelly before bringing on Hearts keeper and fellow debutant Zander Clark at the interval.

It was a sore night for the Scots however, despite taking an early lead through Billy Gilmour’s first goal in senior football.

France defender Benjamin Pavard scored twice with headers as a star-studded home side fought back.

Skipper Kylian Mbappe added a third from the spot before the break and substitute Kingsley Coman hammered a fourth past Clark in the 70th minute to seal a convincing friendly win for the superior hosts.

“The best moment of your life, isn’t it?” said Kelly when asked about his first appearance for his country.

“I played for every age group with Scotland up until now and I have been in a lot of squads along with big Zander so I was just delighted to get that moment eventually.

“I’m so grateful to the manager to get that chance and I am delighted for big Zander as well because we have been in this together from the start.

“During the game you can’t think about anything else or else you get punished, so maybe now and over the next few days it will start to sink in a wee bit but yes, the best moment of your life playing for your country.

“Me and Zander have been in the squad a long time, you take any chance you can get.

“As I said I am really grateful to the manager to give me that chance.

“He didn’t have to do it, he could have played big Angus again so I am over the moon and thankful he gave me that opportunity.

“I think I done OK in the game so it all went to plan, apart from the scoreline.”

Clark, 31, was similarly delighted to make his debut as replacement for long-time buddy Kelly.

He said: “As a kid you always dream of that moment and it was a great feeling and a special occasion as well.

“I am buzzing for Liam as well, I have known him since we were kids and a lot of hard work has gone into it.

“For us to get the first on the same night is a special moment.

“It was tough, they had stars all over the place.

“But we had good spells and a great finish by Billy and it was unfortunate to come away with such a heavy defeat but pleased with the effort we put in.”

Steve Clarke has told his Scotland players to “stop this run” of defeats next month after losing 4-1 to France in Lille.

The Scots went into the friendly knowing they had qualified for the 2024 European Championships after Spain beat Norway at the weekend to ensure a top-two finish in Group A.

Scotland had lost 2-0 to Spain last week on the back of a 3-1 loss to England at Hampden Park in the 150th Heritage Anniversary match and the French were even classier.

Clarke made eight changes from Seville – goalkeepers Liam Kelly and Zander Clark played a half each on their debuts.

Scotland stunned the home side when midfielder Billy Gilmour guided in the opener after 11 minutes – his first ever senior goal.

However, France defender Benjamin Pavard scored two headers, skipper Kylian Mbappe added a third from the spot before the break after a VAR intervention saw referee Tobias Stieler judge Scotland defender Liam Cooper had held Olivier Giroud and substitute Kingsley Coman hammered in a fourth.

After victory in their first five Euro qualifiers, Scotland have lost three in a row and Clarke wants to get that winning feeling back in the final two qualifiers against Georgia next month before the final game against Norway.

He said: “We can take away the memory of the qualification but we lost two games in the camp.

“We don’t like losing. I don’t want them to be comfortable losing or happy to lose.

“We spoke about that after the game. It is important we set our standards higher than that.

“We have lost three in a row now and I have asked them to make sure that when we got to Georgia that we stop this run.

“We want to finish on the same points as Spain so the target is to finish with 21 point which will make it a good campaign.”

Clarke, who was “happy” with his team selection, acknowledged the superiority of the home side.

He said: “I thought we started the game really well, the first 15 minute was good and we got ourselves in front.

“To concede a goal from a corner was disappointing because we know France can score from open play and we try not to give goals away from set plays.

“The third goal – I don’t think VAR should have got involved in the decision, it was soft and when the referee goes there he has to be strong to stick with his original decision.

“Both players were at it and that takes the game away from us.

“The second half was OK but France are always a threat with their pace and power and quality.

“So lots to learn, lots to improve. We know we are not at that level yet.

“It is level we are going to strive to get to and the harder we strive the better team we will be.”

After sealing qualification to Euro 2024 with a 2-1 win over the Netherlands on Friday, France boss Didier Deschamps was happy to finish the camp off with a convincing win

He said: “It was a very good week, When you win you are always happy.

“The most important thing was against the Netherlands on Friday night and the fact that we have shown so much quality tonight as well, it is a great satisfaction for us.

“We created lots of chances against a team that can defend pretty well and has a lot of qualities. So we are very happy.”

Scotland gave France an early fright before suffering a chastening 4-1 loss to their classy hosts in Lille.

The Scots went into the friendly knowing they had qualified for the 2024 European Championships at the weekend after Spain beat Norway to ensure Steve Clarke’s side a top-two finish in Group A.

Clarke took the opportunity to utilise his squad, giving a debut to Liam Kelly among eight changes from last week’s game in Seville and they stunned the home side when midfielder Billy Gilmour guided in the opener after 11 minutes – his first ever senior goal.

However, France defender Benjamin Pavard scored twice with headers by way of a rapid response and skipper Kylian Mbappe added a third from the spot before the break.

Substitute Kingsley Coman hammered in a fourth in the 70th minute to seal a commanding win for the superior home side.

After winning their first five Euro qualifiers, Scotland have lost three games in a row and Clarke will want to get that winning feeling back in the final two qualifiers against Georgia and Norway next month.

In addition to Kelly’s introduction to international football in The Decathlon Arena Stade Pierre Mauroy, Clarke also brought in defenders Nathan Patterson, Greg Taylor and Liam Cooper, midfielders Kenny McLean, Gilmour and Lewis Ferguson and striker Che Adams.

It was always going to be a tough test against Les Blues, who qualified comfortably for Euro 2024 by winning their first six qualifiers.

Boss Didier Deschamps also freshened his side up from the 2-1 win over the Netherlands last Friday.

Mbappe and Antoine Griezmann kept their places while Ousmane Dembele and all-time leading scorer Olivier Giroud came back into the side.

The kick-off was delayed for around 10 minutes due to the long queues at the stadium amid extra security measures put in place after two Swedish nationals were shot dead in Brussels the previous evening.

There was a minute’s silence before the game to commemorate that incident and it was a low-key start to the game on a pitch still showing markings from its use in the Rugby World Cup, before the Scots took an unexpected lead.

France defender Eduardo Camavinga cut out a pass from Gilmour inside the box but with a poor touch gave it straight back to the unmarked Brighton midfielder, who curled the ball low past goalkeeper Mike Maignan.

However, there was little time for the Tartan Army to enjoy the landmark goal as a Griezmann corner from the left five minutes later was all too easily glanced past Kelly by Inter Milan centre-back Pavard.

A refocused France side took control of the game and Mbappe skipped past Jack Hendry before crossing for Pavard again to head past Kelly from close range.

The visitors were struggling to get up the pitch and in the 40th minute France were awarded a penalty after referee Tobias Stieler went pitchside at the behest of VAR and judged Cooper had held Giroud inside the penalty area, with Mbappe stepping up to send the penalty past the diving Kelly, who got close but not close enough.

The Motherwell keeper did not look great moments later when he fumbled a shot from Dembele but the lurking Mbappe could not capitalise.

Hearts keeper Zander Clark replaced Kelly at the start of the second half to make his debut and Jacob Brown and John Souttar would take over from Adams and Cooper. Giroud and Dembele made way for Marcus Thuram and Coman and in the 70th minute the latter thrashed a shot high past Clark after Griezmann had volleyed against the bar.

A low drive from Brown in a rare Scotland attack was pushed past the post by Maignan and the corner came to nothing before Ryan Christie and Stuart Armstrong came on for Gilmour and McLean.

Thuram rattled Clark’s crossbar with a drive and at the other Maignan made saves from Armstrong’s volley and Brown’s header but the game was already well gone for Scotland.