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Lyon Coach Banned 9 Months from French Games for Confronting Referee

FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Ligue 1 - Olympique Lyonnais v Paris St Germain - Groupama Stadium, Lyon, France - February 23, 2025 Olympique Lyonnais coach Paulo Fonseca before the match REUTERS/Manon Cruz/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Ligue 1 - Olympique Lyonnais v Paris St Germain - Groupama Stadium, Lyon, France - February 23, 2025 Olympique Lyonnais coach Paulo Fonseca before the match REUTERS/Manon Cruz/File Photo
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Lyon Coach Banned 9 Months from French Games for Confronting Referee

FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Ligue 1 - Olympique Lyonnais v Paris St Germain - Groupama Stadium, Lyon, France - February 23, 2025 Olympique Lyonnais coach Paulo Fonseca before the match REUTERS/Manon Cruz/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Ligue 1 - Olympique Lyonnais v Paris St Germain - Groupama Stadium, Lyon, France - February 23, 2025 Olympique Lyonnais coach Paulo Fonseca before the match REUTERS/Manon Cruz/File Photo

Lyon coach Paulo Fonseca has been banned from the touchline at games for nine months for aggressively confronting the referee at a French league game.
Fonseca also is banned from the locker room and access to players at games until Sept. 15, the French league said in a disciplinary ruling on Wednesday.
The ban applies just to domestic games and can let Fonseca work on Thursday in the UEFA-organized Europa League. Lyon plays a first-leg game of the round of 16 in Romania against FCSB.
Fonseca angrily confronted referee Benoît Millot on Sunday about a potential penalty for Brest deep in stoppage time as Lyon led 2-1.
After being shown a card, Fonseca approached the referee and leaned in very close to his face before being pushed away by Lyon captain Corentin Tolisso. Fonseca tried to confront the referee a second time and was restrained by a couple of Lyon players.
It was Fonseca’s fifth game in charge of Lyon since being hired in January by the club’s American owner John Textor. The Portuguese coach was fired by AC Milan in December after just six months in charge.
Lyon said on Wednesday it regretted Fonseca was judged for his emotional reaction and he had no intent to physically attack the referee. The club is considering an appeal and noted the context of criticism of refereeing in French soccer.
Marseille president Pablo Longoria was given a 15-match ban last week after he accused French referees of “true corruption."

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Fernandez Uncertain over Chelsea Future after Champions League Exit

Chelsea's Argentinian midfielder #08 Enzo Fernandez gives a thumb up at the end of the UEFA Champions League round of 16 second leg football match between Chelsea FC and Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) at Stamford Bridge, west London on March 17, 2026. (Photo by Adrian Dennis / AFP)
Chelsea's Argentinian midfielder #08 Enzo Fernandez gives a thumb up at the end of the UEFA Champions League round of 16 second leg football match between Chelsea FC and Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) at Stamford Bridge, west London on March 17, 2026. (Photo by Adrian Dennis / AFP)
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Fernandez Uncertain over Chelsea Future after Champions League Exit

Chelsea's Argentinian midfielder #08 Enzo Fernandez gives a thumb up at the end of the UEFA Champions League round of 16 second leg football match between Chelsea FC and Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) at Stamford Bridge, west London on March 17, 2026. (Photo by Adrian Dennis / AFP)
Chelsea's Argentinian midfielder #08 Enzo Fernandez gives a thumb up at the end of the UEFA Champions League round of 16 second leg football match between Chelsea FC and Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) at Stamford Bridge, west London on March 17, 2026. (Photo by Adrian Dennis / AFP)

Enzo Fernandez has suggested he could leave Chelsea at the end of the current season after the London club were knocked out of the Champions League.

Leroy Rosenior's side were beaten 3-0 at home to Paris Saint-Germain on Tuesday as the French giants completed an aggregate 8-3 thrashing of the Blues over the two legs of their last-16 tie.

With world club champions Chelsea currently sixth in the Premier League, they may yet fail to qualify for a place among European football's elite next term, AFP reported.

Argentina's Fernandez captained the Blues against PSG on Tuesday in the absence of the injured Reece James.

But the 25-year-old midfielder did little to end speculation he could be on his way out of Stamford Bridge, telling ESPN: "I don't know, there are eight games left and the FA Cup. There's the World Cup and then we'll see."

Fernandez, reflecting on Chelsea's latest loss to PSG, who put the tie to bed with two goals in the first 15 minutes at Stamford Bridge, added: "I think we failed to control the game. In the first leg, we lost focus in the final 15 minutes and conceded three goals, and here it happened at the very start.

"At this level, you can't concede two goals so quickly because of small details.

Ultimately, over the two legs, PSG were the better side and deserve to go through. Since I arrived at Chelsea we have already passed through similar situations and we were able to turn them around.

"Now, our focus must be on winning the FA Cup and achieving our goal of qualifying for next season's Champions League."

Eight-time FA Cup-winners Chelsea face third-tier Port Vale in the quarter-finals on April 4.

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Celtic Keeper Schmeichel Fears Shoulder Injury Could End His Career

18 February 2025, Bavaria, Munich: Celtic's goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel in action during the UEFA Champions League layoff second leg soccer match between Bayern Munich and Celtic Glasgow at the Allianz Arena. (dpa)
18 February 2025, Bavaria, Munich: Celtic's goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel in action during the UEFA Champions League layoff second leg soccer match between Bayern Munich and Celtic Glasgow at the Allianz Arena. (dpa)
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Celtic Keeper Schmeichel Fears Shoulder Injury Could End His Career

18 February 2025, Bavaria, Munich: Celtic's goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel in action during the UEFA Champions League layoff second leg soccer match between Bayern Munich and Celtic Glasgow at the Allianz Arena. (dpa)
18 February 2025, Bavaria, Munich: Celtic's goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel in action during the UEFA Champions League layoff second leg soccer match between Bayern Munich and Celtic Glasgow at the Allianz Arena. (dpa)

Kasper Schmeichel has revealed a major shoulder injury could end his career.

The Celtic goalkeeper has been playing through the pain since hurting his left shoulder while appearing for Denmark last year and aggravated the injury against Stuttgart last month.

He has missed the last five matches for Scottish champions Celtic and received a "devastating" diagnosis from a specialist on Monday.

Schmeichel, speaking to CBS Sports Golazo Network, said: "I'm going to need two surgeries now to fix my shoulder.

"It's a bit of a body blow. I've torn the bicep, torn the rotator cuff, dislocated the shoulder, torn the labrum -- everything's kind of gone. It's looking like 10-12 months of rehab."

The 39-year-old added: "You don't really know how to react to this. I could have potentially played my last ever football game. I've been a footballer since the day I was born. That kind of thought is devastating. It's very, very hard to wrap my head around at the moment."

Schmeichel is the son of goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel, a key figure in several of the successful Manchester United teams managed by Alex Ferguson.

Kasper Schmeichel was between the posts when Leicester caused one of the all-time great upsets in English football by winning the English Premier League in 2016 and was the Foxes' keeper when they lifted the FA Cup five years later.

He later played for Nice and Anderlecht before joining Glasgow giants Celtic ahead of the 2024/25 season.

Schmeichel's initial operation is set to take place on Friday and he is determined to salvage his career despite what promises to be a lengthy period of rehabilitation.

"My mind is like, 'OK, I'm going to give it absolutely everything I can to see if I can get back'," he said.

"It would be probably one of the greatest feats of my career if I could get back from an injury like this. I'm going to fight, I'm going to try everything I can."

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Champions League: Barcelona, Liverpool Have Work to Do as Bayern Looks to Set Up Madrid Quarterfinal

Liverpool's Dutch manager Arne Slot attends a press conference at Anfield stadium in Liverpool, north-west England on March 17, 2026, on the eve of their UEFA Champions League, last 16 second leg football match against Galatasaray. (AFP)
Liverpool's Dutch manager Arne Slot attends a press conference at Anfield stadium in Liverpool, north-west England on March 17, 2026, on the eve of their UEFA Champions League, last 16 second leg football match against Galatasaray. (AFP)
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Champions League: Barcelona, Liverpool Have Work to Do as Bayern Looks to Set Up Madrid Quarterfinal

Liverpool's Dutch manager Arne Slot attends a press conference at Anfield stadium in Liverpool, north-west England on March 17, 2026, on the eve of their UEFA Champions League, last 16 second leg football match against Galatasaray. (AFP)
Liverpool's Dutch manager Arne Slot attends a press conference at Anfield stadium in Liverpool, north-west England on March 17, 2026, on the eve of their UEFA Champions League, last 16 second leg football match against Galatasaray. (AFP)

Barcelona and Atletico Madrid will look to complete a trio of Spanish successes over English rivals in the Champions League 's round of 16 on Wednesday.

A day after Real Madrid ousted Manchester City, Barcelona takes on Newcastle at Camp Nou with the score at 1-1 from last week's first leg after Lamine Yamal's stoppage-time penalty. Barca has won all seven of its home matches in 2026, scoring at least three goals in each.

Atletico is in a better position — 5-2 up on Tottenham — though facing an away match in the second leg.

English hopes may rest with Liverpool, which hosts Galatasaray at Anfield needing to overturn a 1-0 loss from the first match in Istanbul. There is growing pressure on Liverpool manager Arne Slot heading into the game.

England had a record six teams in the round of 16 but only Arsenal has so far qualified, with Chelsea joining Man City in getting eliminated on Tuesday.

In Wednesday's other match, Bayern Munich is expected to finish off Atalanta after a 6-1 rout in Italy last week. That would set up a blockbuster quarterfinal matchup with Madrid, the 15-time champion.