from incoming transfer fees.

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Campos vowed, as Monaco closed in on the title, that he would create "other masterpieces" in his career, and last summer's transfer window at Lille stood in comparison with any of the dazzling brushwork he produced in the principality.

Having clashed with Marcelo Bielsa over the club's recruitment policy during the Argentinian's blink-and-miss-it tenure as head coach, Campos has played a central role in Lille's renaissance. The cash-strapped club spent a measly €8.9 million on transfers last summer—their shrewd acquisitions including Jose Fonte (free), Zeki Celik (€2.5 million), Jonathan Ikone (€5 million), Jonathan Bamba (free) and Rafael Leao (free)—but the team Campos helped to assemble spectacularly outperformed expectations under Christophe Galtier, going from relegation peril to Champions League qualification in just 12 months.

For ElOmari, his former protege, Campos simply possesses an innate ability to spot good players. "Luis doesn't need to see 50 matches [to assess a player's worth]," says the former Morocco international. "He has a gift."

Karanka believes it boils down to a combination of knowledge, experience and motivation.

"He's been in football for a while in different areas: scout, coach, sporting director," says the former Real Madrid centre-back. "And he's very enthusiastic about his job. His passion is the key. If you spend one hour with him, you can be sure that for one hour he'll be speaking about football."

Lille have already sold Thiago Mendes and Youssouf Kone to Lyon for a combined fee of €35.5 million this summer, and Pepe is also expected to leave for as much as