A hefty ban awaits Lyon coach Fonseca for attacking the referee

Paulo Fonseca, the coach of Olympique Lyonnais, may be suspended for up to seven months after he physically reacted to referee Neoit Millot during Sunday’s 2-1 Ligue 1 victory over Brest.

Following a review of a possible penalty for Brest—which the Brittany team did not receive—Fonseca was given a straight red card for his “intimidating attitude,” according to Millot.

“I chose to send him out straight away when he leaped at me with a menacing demeanor. It kept getting out of hand,” Millot said Monday in an interview with the French sports daily L’Equipe.

“His attitude was even more extreme, and he was actually trying to strike someone. a blow to the head. I didn’t even have time to declare the outcome, which was that there would be no penalty. To be exact, there appeared to be a tiny nose contact.

Although Fonseca expressed regret, the Portuguese midfielder could face a punishment under the rules of the French professional league (LFP) for his outburst, which ended when Lyon players forced him away from Millot.

The French referee’s organization announced last week that its members would use their right to leave if they or their families were in danger after a match official received a “outpouring of hate” in response to remarks made by Pablo Longoria, the president of Olympique de Marseille.

According to the local media, Longoria had protested the use of referee Jeremy Stinat during their league match on February 22 against Auxerre, which they lost 3-0.

Longoria claimed that “true corruption” was the reason for the loss and voiced his ire at defender Derek Cornelius’ red card.

For his remarks last Wednesday, Longoria was given a 15-match suspension by the LFP.