Lille travel to London on Monday, ahead of their Tuesday evening match against Chelsea in the Champions League.
The game is obviously a huge deal for the French club, who are struggling this season after becoming champions in the last campaign.
There’s been many changes at the club, who now find themselves 10th in Ligue 1, but one constant is Jose Fonte. The defender has lots of connections with London, having played for West Ham United and Crystal Palace, and those connections form the basis for an interview which is in Sunday’s edition of L’Equipe.
Fonte’s family still live in London, despite him leaving West Ham in 2018, and it’s thought that the defender may choose to settle in the city when his playing days finally come to an end.
When quizzed on his time with West Ham, the 38-year-old explained the stadium change had been a big deal, and that he and other players had been in the middle of off-pitch issues.
L’Equipe quote Fonte as saying: “I arrive at West Ham in 2017 with my life completely calm, with my wife, my children. I live in Canary Wharf, in a very nice apartment. The club allowed me to live in this penthouse occupied by Simone Zaza, on the 38th floor, with a view of all of London. It was really exceptional. From West Ham training centre it’s twenty minutes, from central London it’s twenty minutes too, so I enjoyed it a lot.”
Specifically on the London Stadium, he said: “At the beginning, the players didn’t like it, the fans didn’t like it. When I arrive at West Ham, the club have just left Boleyn and are playing at the Olympic stadium. At first the players didn’t like it, the fans didn’t like it, so when I arrive there’s this feeling that it’s not West Ham’s stadium… But it’s an incredible stadium.
“Afterwards, I understand why they have this affinity with Boleyn, they knew everything there. But I think they are getting used to it. On the sporting level, I arrive at a difficult time for the club, in a crisis of results. There were a lot of problems, between the supporters, the president, the son of the president who was talking on social media…”
