Fenerbahce Returns to Champions League Group Stage After 17 Years, But Guendouzi Steals the Show With Provocations in Lyon

The night was supposed to end with a Turkish celebration. And on the scoreboard, it did: 2-1 in favor of Fenerbahce, a result that gave the Istanbul club something it hadn't tasted in nearly two decades, a spot in the Champions League group stage. But what stole the spotlight came after the final whistle, on the pitch at Groupama Stadium and even in the locker room tunnel.

Fenerbahce beat Lyon on Wednesday, and with that result sealed its qualification for the main stage of the Champions League for the first time since the 2008-09 season. Seventeen years of waiting for a historic Turkish football club. It should have been the story of the day. It wasn't.

Guendouzi, the Name on Everyone's Lips

Matteo Guendouzi arrived in Lyon already wearing the villain tag. He spent time at Marseille, Lyon's fiercest rival, between 2022 and 2024, and that history doesn't fade easily in this part of France. During warmups, the midfielder flipped off the home fans. At the final whistle, he did it again, shouted "Allez l'OM" (let's go, Marseille), and even grabbed his crotch, a gesture also spotted from his teammate Mason Greenwood.

The already heated crowd didn't stay quiet: some fans tried to jump onto the field to reach him. While his own teammates tried to pull him away from the danger zone, Guendouzi broke free and jumped back toward the stands to provoke them again. That's when Lyon's players came running, there was shoving, some water thrown his way, and a full-blown scuffle with players and staff from both sides tangled up in it.

The most bizarre moment came in the tunnel. With Guendouzi still taunting fans as Romelu Lukaku and Milan Skriniar tried to escort him away, Lyon's goalkeeping coach, Antonio Ferreira, came out and landed a flying kick on him. That set off another melee, this one outside the field of play. UEFA, without a doubt, has plenty of footage to review.

Guendouzi, 27, a former Arsenal player and France international who joined Fenerbahce in January from Lazio following his stint at Marseille, later gave his side of the story.

If they want to provoke, it goes both ways. They insulted my family, and to me that was disrespectful. If afterward we can't even celebrate the way we want, I think that's a shame.Matteo Guendouzi

On the other side, Lyon captain Corentin Tolisso didn't hold back.

I told him to stay humble in victory, to go celebrate with his team in the locker room. 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 play away, we can't react like that with that mentality.Corentin Tolisso

Tolisso went further, calling Guendouzi's attitude "irresponsible," and said he hoped the episode would serve as a lesson. Fenerbahce, meanwhile, will have to wait to find out whether the celebration over its return to the Champions League group stage gets overshadowed by any disciplinary sanctions stemming from what happened in Lyon.