Mattéo Guendouzi Faces Two-Game Champions League Ban After Lyon Incident
NYON, Switzerland — Mattéo Guendouzi will miss Fenerbahce’s long-awaited return to the Champions League group stage after UEFA handed him a two-match suspension for his role in the chaotic playoff win at Lyon.
The French midfielder, a former Marseille player and no stranger to the rivalry, stood at the center of the storm during and after Fenerbahce’s 2-1 victory on Aug. 26 — a result that pushed the Istanbul club into the Champions League for the first time in 18 years. The tension around his return to France boiled over into a mass brawl and a string of flashpoints that have now drawn heavy sanctions.
Guendouzi, 27, has been banned from Fenerbahce’s first two group games: the home clash with Roma next Thursday and the trip to Aston Villa on Oct. 14.
UEFA said the punishment covers violations of “rules of decent conduct,” “insulting players or others present at the match,” and provoking spectators. The disciplinary body also fined him 50,000 euros ($58,000).
The incidents were as provocative as the charge sheet suggests. During the warmup, Guendouzi raised his middle fingers to Lyon fans. He repeated the gesture after the final whistle, shouted “Allez l’OM” (“Go Marseille”) and grabbed his crotch amid wild post-match scenes. He later claimed Lyon supporters had insulted his family before and during the game.
The night turned uglier near the players’ tunnel. Lyon goalkeeper coach Antonio Ferreira launched a leaping kick at Guendouzi in the post-game melee, an act UEFA labeled “serious assault.” Ferreira received a three-game ban from Europa League fixtures, with a further two matches deferred.
Mason Greenwood, another of Fenerbahce’s high-profile summer arrivals, also came under scrutiny. The forward was found to have violated rules of decent conduct but escaped with a one-match ban deferred for one year, effectively putting him on probation. He was fined 30,000 euros ($35,000).
The fallout did not stop with individual players.
UEFA hit Fenerbahce with a 50,000-euro ($58,000) fine for violating rules of decent conduct and another 45,000 euros ($52,000) for fan misconduct. Lyon’s bill ran even higher: 108,500 euros ($126,000) across a series of charges linked to the disorder around the tie.
For Fenerbahce, who have poured money into the squad in an effort to close the gap on domestic rival Galatasaray and reassert themselves in Europe, the timing is brutal. Their long-awaited Champions League return will begin without the combative midfielder who helped drag them there — and whose fire, in Lyon, burned far beyond the limits of UEFA’s patience.
Lyon, meanwhile, must pick up the pieces and turn the page quickly. Their European campaign starts in the second-tier Europa League away at Anderlecht next Thursday, under the shadow of a night that will be remembered as much for the chaos as for the scoreline.
