Luc Gilbert Cyrille Nilis (born 25 May 1967) is a Belgian professional football manager and former Football player who is the striker coach of Patro Eisden.
He spent most of his career in his native Belgium and, in particular, in the Netherlands with PSV Eindhoven. His playing days came to an end in the 2000–01 season after breaking his leg in a match with his club Aston Villa following a clash with Ipswich Town goalkeeper Richard Wright.
Club career
His former clubs include Winterslag, Anderlecht,
PSV Eindhoven and Aston Villa.
Early years
As youth player, Nilis was regarded as Winterslag's greatest talent. Standard, Club Brugge and PSV Eindhoven showed interest in the stylish attacker, but under the influence of
Raymond Goethals, Nilis was transferred to Anderlecht at the age of 18.
Anderlecht
Forming a duo with players such as Luís Oliveira or
Marc Degryse, he would win several national prizes in the next seasons.
Although he was not considered as a very quick football player, his scoring ability and excellent striking technique stood out. Long, placed distance shots with both left and right feet became his hallmark.
PSV Eindhoven
Having left Anderlecht for Eindhoven in 1994, Nilis topped the Dutch scoring charts in the 1995–96 season, plundering 21 goals.
He continued that form into 1996–97 – leading the pack by December 1996 with 13
– before matching his previous total,
in a season that ended with PSV winning the league title for the first time in five years.
In late 1997, Nilis scored thrice in three games over a fifteen-day period, all against
Shay Given; with a goal at Newcastle United in the 1997–98 UEFA Champions League group stage coming in between goals for Belgium against the Republic of Ireland.
During his time with PSV, Nilis formed one of the deadliest partnerships in Europe with team-mate Ruud van Nistelrooy, who signed for PSV in 1998.
In the 1998–99 season, Nilis and van Nistelrooy scored 55 league goals between them. Van Nistelrooy finished as top-scorer,
Nilis came second. In the following season, Nilis' last for PSV, they scored 48 league goals between them.
Aston Villa
After six years in the Netherlands, Nilis joined Aston Villa on a Bosman transfer in June 2000.
Nilis' Villa career started well, as he scored on his debut in the UEFA Intertoto Cup against Dukla Příbram on 22 July 2000
before going on to score on his league debut against Chelsea on 27 August 2000.
In a league match against Ipswich Town on 9 September 2000, Nilis was involved in a clash with goalkeeper Richard Wright
that left him with a double compound fracture of his right shin.
At one point, the injury became infected and Nilis even feared a possible amputation.
This hypothesis was later ruled out, although his playing career was effectively ended.
International career
Nilis played 56 times for the Belgium national team, scoring ten times. A prolific goalscorer with his clubs, he scored his first goal for Belgium only on his 24th cap (a 9–0 win against Zambia).
Nilis played in the FIFA World Cups in 1994 and 1998. Qualification for the latter was sealed with Nilis' goals in each leg of Belgium's playoff against the Irish Republic.
Coaching career
After his playing career ended, Beringen-Heusden-Zolder were his next port of call, becoming technical director in 2005, not long before the club's liquidation after financial difficulties.
Nilis took a job with PSV, first as a scout, and then training the club's forwards. In January 2011, Nilis became assistant manager with Turkish club Kasımpaşa, followed by another assistant manager stint with Gençlerbirliği S.K., also in Turkey. In April 2015, he was re-hired by PSV as a striker coach.
In August 2021, Nilis became the head coach of Belgian Division 2 club Belisia Bilzen, which had been founded earlier that year from a merger between Spouwen-Mopertingen and Bilzerse Waltwilder.[ LUC NILIS SPITSENTRAINER TALENT ACADEMY, krcgenk.be, 10 March 2022]
In 2023, he was appointed striker coach of Patro Eisden.
Personal life
Nilis's father, Roger (1938–2011), played as a professional footballer in Belgium in the 1960s.
His son Arne was a youth player for Genk and PSV Eindhoven but was unable to pursue a professional career, mainly due to injuries and a gambling addiction.
Legacy
Ronaldo names Nilis as the best strike partner he played with, despite sharing only a brief time with him at PSV.
Ruud van Nistelrooy has also stated on several occasions that the Belgian was one of the best players, if not the best, he had ever played with.
Despite the lack of a major international career, the technically skilled attacker is still praised by football fans and journalists in the low countries.
Career statistics
Club
| + Appearances and goals by club, season and competition |
|
|
| Winterslag | 1984–85 | Belgian Second Division | 5 |
1985–86 | Belgian Second Division | 11 |
|
| Anderlecht | 1986–87 | Belgian First Division | 6 |
1987–88 | Belgian First Division | 15 |
1988–89 | Belgian First Division | 19 |
1989–90 | Belgian First Division | 13 |
1990–91 | Belgian First Division | 22 |
1991–92 | Belgian First Division | 21 |
1992–93 | Belgian First Division | 23 |
1993–94 | Belgian First Division | 31 |
|
| PSV Eindhoven | 1994–95 | Eredivisie | 13 |
1995–96 | Eredivisie | 31 |
1996–97 | Eredivisie | 26 |
1997–98 | Eredivisie | 17 |
1998–99 | Eredivisie | 25 |
1999–2000 | Eredivisie | 21 |
|
| Aston Villa | 2000–01 | Premier League | 2 |
|
International
- Scores and results list Belgium's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Nilis goal.
| + List of international goals scored by Luc Nilis |
|
| Exhibition game |
| Friendly |
| UEFA Euro 1996 qualifying |
| 2–0 |
| FIFA World Cup 1998 qualifying |
| 3–0 |
| FIFA World Cup 1998 qualifying |
| FIFA World Cup 1998 qualifying |
| Friendly |
| FIFA World Cup 1998 |
Honours
Anderlecht
-
Belgian First Division: 1986–87, 1990–91, 1992–93, 1993–94
-
Belgian Cup: 1988–89, 1989–90, 1993–94
-
Belgian Supercup: 1987, 1993
-
European Cup Winners' Cup runner-up: 1989–90
-
Bruges Matins: 1988
PSV
-
Eredivisie: 1996–97, 1999–2000
-
KNVB Cup: 1995–96; runner-up: 1997–98
-
Johan Cruyff Shield: 1996, 1997, 1998
Individual
-
Belgian Bronze Shoe: 1990, 1991
-
Dutch Eredivisie Footballer of the Year: 1995
-
Belgian Professional Footballer of the Year: 1995–96
-
Eredivisie Top Scorer: 1995–96 (21 goals),
-
Golden Shoe Lifetime Achievement Award: 2001
-
Algemeen Dagblad The Best PSV Team Ever: 2020
-
DH The Best RSC Anderlecht Team Ever: 2020
-
Pro League Hall of Fame: 2024
External links
