Fenerbahçe beats Lyon 2:1 away and advances to the next round

Heated scenes on and off the pitch

His compatriot and teammate reacted to the scenes with sharp criticism. When asked by a reporter what he thought of the behavior, he said word for word: „There's no need to do that." He added, according to the reports available, that Guendouzi had cited fan insults as his reason. „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."

Fenerbahçe had turned the game around with goals in the second half, converting the 1:1 situation from the first leg into a 2:1 victory. The Istanbul side thus came through the qualifying round and are through to the next phase of the European competition.

For Olympique Lyonnais, the defeat means elimination from the current competition. The French club had gone into the match level after the first-leg draw and had taken the lead at one stage, but was unable to hold on to the advantage.

Guendouzi's career path

Guendouzi's sporting résumé is international: he has played for France and was on the books of Arsenal at the start of his career. From 2022 to 2024 he was at Olympique Marseille, before moving to Lazio Rome and, in January of this year, joining Fenerbahçe Istanbul on a permanent deal.

Possible UEFA consequences

The disciplinary committee of the European football union is expected to look into the incidents. Both violent conduct and provocation of supporters can result in retrospective bans. An official UEFA statement had not been issued at the time of writing.

The Turkish club are now looking ahead to the tasks to come. After advancing to the next round, the team and their supporters face a packed schedule in the domestic Süper Lig and in European competition.

The sporting result stands in contrast to the images that defined the match. Several television channels showed match footage in which players from both teams were shoving and slapping each other; the focus, however, was on what consequences the incidents will have for Guendouzi and his teammates.

Observers attributed the disturbances to the heated atmosphere of knockout matches carrying high sporting stakes. Lyon had narrowly missed out on European qualification the previous season, and the pressure in front of their own fans was correspondingly high.