Union St. Gilloise vs Lille

Boussadia's 32nd-minute red card was the defining moment. Lille had been chasing the game before the dismissal and were forced to reorganise midway through the first half. While they managed to equalise through Perrin after the break, the extra space and Union's numerical advantage eventually told — Zeneli's winner came from a side that had been stretched by playing a man down for 41 minutes.

• Louis Patris (Union St. Gilloise): The Belgian full-back was a constant threat down the right flank. He hit the post after two minutes and clinically finished to open the scoring in the 24th minute. His attacking output was the difference in the first half.

• Besfort Zeneli (Union St. Gilloise): Introduced in the 65th minute, the substitute scored the winner eight minutes later. His impact off the bench was exactly what a manager wants to see in a final pre-season friendly.

• Gaëtan Perrin (Lille): The winger pulled Lille level with a well-taken finish in the 59th minute, briefly giving the ten-man visitors a foothold they could not sustain.

Player of the match: Louis Patris

Union's 2-1 victory, with a 1-0 lead at half-time, reflects a game that was tighter than the scoreline suggests. Lille's red card in the 32nd minute should have made the second half straightforward, yet Perrin's equaliser showed the visitors' capacity to cause problems even with ten men. Union's response — Zeneli's winner within 14 minutes of the equaliser — demonstrated a useful resilience for the season ahead.

The match, played behind closed doors, marked Union's final tune-up before competitive action. Lille, meanwhile, continued their pre-season build-up with a mixed set of results.

For Union St. Gilloise, this was the final friendly of the 2026 pre-season. The result extended their encouraging warm-up run — they had beaten Patro Eisden 4-0 the day before in a closed-door friendly — and built confidence ahead of the Belgian Super Cup against Club Brugge on 31 July 2026, followed by a UEFA Champions League third qualifying round tie against FK Bodø/Glimt.

Lille continue their pre-season preparations with friendlies still to come before the Ligue 1 campaign begins. Forward Hamza Igamane missed the match through injury.

A useful workout for both sides. Union will take more from it — a win over a Ligue 1 opponent, a clean first-half performance, and a match-winning contribution from the bench. Lille's discipline (Boussadia's red card) and game management when reduced to ten men will need sharpening before the competitive season starts.