Fenerbahce’s first Champions League qualification for 17 years ended with a mass brawl that got both players and staff involved after a win over Lyon.
Matteo Guendouzi was at the center of it all.
The long-haired midfielder was already an unpopular figure among Lyon fans because of his past as a former player for its French rival, Marseille. He riled up the home supporters at Lyon’s Groupama Stadium even more with some inflammatory antics before and mostly after Fenerbahce’s 2-1 win on Wednesday that helped the Turkish team get beyond the qualifying stage for the first time since 2008-09.
He was seen raising his middle finger to Lyon fans during the warmup and after the game, shouting “Allez l’OM” (“Go Marseille”), and also grabbing his crotch — a gesture also apparently performed by teammate Mason Greenwood — in wild post-match scenes that are likely to be investigated by UEFA.
His overexuberant celebrations in front of Lyon’s supporters increasingly riled them – some were seen attempting to get onto the field – and, as he was being dragged away by teammates, Guendouzi broke away from them and started leaping about on the field.
Lyon players responded to that by sprinting up to him, barging into him and tossing water toward him, provoking a mass melee.
Worse was to come. With Guendouzi still appearing to be goading Lyon fans as he was escorted off the field by teammates Romelu Lukaku and Milan Škriniar, Lyon goalkeeper coach Antonio Ferreira emerged from the tunnel area and fly-kicked Guendouzi — sparking another free-for-all in the tunnel.
Speaking afterward, Guendouzi said home fans had been insulting his family during the warm-up and throughout the game.
“If you want to tease, (it) goes both ways,” said Guendouzi in quotes carried by French radio station RMC. “They insulted my family, and for me, that was disrespectful. If afterwards, we can’t even celebrate the way we want to, I think that’s a shame.”
Lyon captain Corentin Tolisso described Guendouzi's actions as “irresponsible” and said he hopes he “learns and grows from it.”
“I told him to remain humble in victory, to go celebrate with his team in the locker room," Tolisso said in quotes on RMC taken from an interview with Canal+. "There’s no need to do that. He told me it was because the fans had insulted him, but we get insulted every weekend when we’re away from home, we can’t react like that with that mentality.”
The 27-year-old Guendouzi, who has played for France and also for Arsenal early in his career, was at Marseille from 2022-24 and then Lazio before completing a permanent move to Fenerbahce in January.
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FILE - Fenerbahce's Matteo Guendouzi, right, vies for the ball with Galatasaray's Lucas Torreira during a Turkish Super Lig soccer match between Galatasaray and Fenerbahce in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, April 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra, File)
