Lille vs RAAL La Louvière

Perrin's goal on the stroke of half-time was decisive. RAAL La Louvière, who had played three friendlies already and arrived with more match sharpness, had shown brief signs of a response when they forced a save from Özer in the 37th minute. Going into the break 2-0 down rather than 1-0 killed any realistic hope of a comeback, and Ancelotti's wholesale changes meant the second half became a fitness exercise rather than a contest.

• Soriba Diaoune — The 18-year-old forward opened the scoring with a poacher's finish and was a constant menace drifting off Giroud's shoulder. A bright start to what could be a breakthrough campaign.
• Félix Correia — The Portuguese winger provided the assist of the match with a line-breaking pass for Perrin's goal. His willingness to switch flanks caused problems all half.
• Isaac Cossier — Fresh off signing a new contract after a loan at Le Mans, the 19-year-old centre-back scored the third with a commanding header and looked solid defensively in the second period.
• Olivier Giroud — At 39, the veteran striker went close twice (bar, shot saved) and occupied the central defenders, creating space for the younger runners around him.

Man of the match: Soriba Diaoune — his goal and general movement set the tone.

Lille's 3-0 scoreline undersells their first-half dominance. The hosts hit the woodwork, forced multiple saves and created three clear big chances before the break, according to French match reports. RAAL La Louvière managed only one meaningful attempt in the opening 45 minutes (a 37th-minute effort). The second-half stats were more balanced as Lille fielded an entirely changed XI, but Ancelotti's side still created the best opportunity through Önal before Cossier's set-piece header sealed it.

For Lille, this is a textbook start to pre-season under Ancelotti: a clean sheet, three goals from three different scorers, and minutes for every available squad member including two new signings. The club is without its World Cup participants (Matias Fernandez-Pardo, Nathan Ngoy, Ayyoub Bouaddi, Ngal'ayel Mukau), who are still on extended breaks. The next friendly is against Union Saint-Gilloise next weekend (25-26 July). RAAL La Louvière, who narrowly avoided relegation from the Belgian Pro League last season, continue their own pre-season build-up.

A professional, controlled pre-season opener from Lille. The first XI showed a clear tactical identity under Ancelotti — high pressing, quick vertical passes and fluid movement in attack. The second XI was more disjointed, which is expected at this stage. The young players (Diaoune, Cossier, Hamidi, Boussadia) all made positive cases for more minutes. RAAL offered little threat but will benefit from the sharpness of facing Ligue 1 opposition.