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LILIAN NALIS
Full Name: Lilian Bernard Pierre Nalis
Born: 29 September 1971
Came from: Sheffield United Went to: Released
First game: 14 January 2006 Last game: 19 April 2008
Appearances: 111 (103/8) Goals: 6
Born in Nogent-sur-Marne, in the eastern suburbs of Paris, Nalis joined Argyle on a free transfer following his release by Sheffield United.
Originally a product of Auxerre's youth system, he signed a professional contract with the club for the 1992-93 season but did not make a first team appearance. He subsequently had spells with Caen (1993-95, 21 appearances), Laval (1995-97, 81 appearances and 12 goals), Guingamp (1997-98, 30 appearances), AC Le Havre (1998-99, 27 appearances and three goals) and SC Bastia in Corsica (1999-2002, 82 appearances and three goals).
He then moved to Italy and Serie A, joining Chievo Verona in 2002. He made eight appearances during the 2002-03 season before moving to England.
An energetic midfielder, Nalis was brought to Leicester City from Italy in 2003 after they had secured promotion to the top flight. He spent two seasons with the Foxes, staying for the second after their relegation from the Premiership, as it was then known. His single top-flight goal remains a memorable piece of footage, a thunderous 25-yard volley in a home game against Leeds United in 2003.
In the summer of 2005, Nalis was transferred to Sheffield United but lost his place early in the season after just four appearances. He subsequently spent a month on loan with Coventry City, making six appearances and scoring twice, before agreeing to cancel the remaining 18 months of his contract to move to Home Park, under Tony Pulis.
'Lil' spent two-and-a-half productive seasons at Home Park, becoming a firm favourite with Argyle supporters and winning the Player of the Season award for 2006-07. He was released in April 2008, aged 36, and subsequently spent a season with Swindon Town (2008-09, 24 appearances) before returning to Corsica, this time joining CA Bastia, where he made 25 appearances during the 2009-10 season.
In 2010 he retired from playing and was appointed assistant coach at CA Bastia. Over the following three years, the club achieved two promotions, reaching Ligue 2, the French equivalent of the English Championship, for the 2013-14 season.
Nalis left Bastia in June 2014 and a month later joined Ligue 2 side Stade Lavallois, often known simply as Laval, as assistant coach. He subsequently performed similar roles at former club AC Le Havre (2016-19), RC Lens (2020-24) and Nice (2024-25), before moving to Rennes in 2026.
YOUR CONTRIBUTION
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From Tyler House in Saltash on 10 Nov 2013 ...
Lilian Nalis, one of my favourite ever Argyle players. A fantastic player for Argyle who was always winning and distributing the ball to his teammates. Lil won Player of the Season for 2006-07, and deservedly so and he's probably the Argyle player I miss the most! Irreplaceable.
APPEARANCE DETAILS [reselect competitions]
The details below reflect appearances in all first-team competitions.
We are very grateful to many who have helped write GoS-DB's player pen-pictures, and to Dave Rowntree and the PAFC Media Team for their help with photos. Thanks also to staff at the National Football Museum, the Scottish Football Museum and ScotlandsPeople for their valuable assistance.
The following publications have been particularly valuable in the research of pen-pictures: Plymouth Argyle, A Complete Record 1903-1989 (Brian Knight, ISBN 0-907969-40-2); Plymouth Argyle, 101 Golden Greats (Andy Riddle, ISBN 1-874287-47-3); Football League Players' Records 1888-1939 (Michael Joyce, ISBN 1-899468-67-6); Football League Players' Records 1946-1988 (Barry Hugman, ISBN 1-85443-020-3) and Plymouth Argyle Football Club Handbooks.
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