Lucky escape for West Ham after Paulo Fonseca is handed unprecedented nine-month ban
Paulo Fonseca has been handed an unprecedented nine-month ban out in France, and the West Ham United owners will be thinking themselves very lucky indeed.
David Sullivan actually wanted Paulo Fonseca to replace David Moyes at West Ham back in 2024.
Interestingly, the 52-year-old allegedly held talks with Liverpool about replacing Jurgen Klopp at Anfield as well.
In the end, Paulo Fonseca moved from Lille to Lyon, whilst West Ham appointed Julen Lopetegui.
We all know how that turned out at the London Stadium.
Graham Potter came in to replace Lopetegui in early January, and the Hammers head coach has already made a big impact at the club.
Thankfully, Potter seems to have saved us from complete and utter disaster under Lopetegui.
However, and this is saying something, things could have been even worse for West Ham, had Fonseca been brought into the club instead of the Spaniard.
Lucky escape for West Ham after Paulo Fonseca’s nine-month ban
The Portuguese is well-known for the attractive brand of football that he implements.
However, he’s also well-known for his fiery temper.
And that was his undoing out in France on Sunday night.
Midway through Lyon’s clash with Brest, Fonseca angrily confronted referee Benoit Millot after a decision from the official that he perceived to be an incredibly poor one.
The 52-year-old got right up in the ref’s face and actually made an attempted head-butt, albeit with minimal contact.
It was a disgraceful move from the Lyon boss, and he has now been made to severely pay for it.
The French Professional Football League released a statement on Wednesday, sharing their decision to ban Paulo Fonseca from ‘accessing the bench, the officials’ dressing rooms, and carrying out any official functions before, during, or after matches until 30 November’ (BBC).
Lyon apparently believe the punishment is severe, but the French football league have to set a precedent here.
Mask of Zorro becomes mask of sorrow
Fonseca has made a name for himself for his off-field and touchline antics throughout the years.
Back in the 2017/18 season whilst in charge of Shakhtar Donetsk, Fonseca promised that he would dress as Zorro from The Mask of Zorro film, if his side beat Manchester City in the Champions League.
After a 2-1 win, Fonseca lived up to his promise.
That stunt from the 52-year-old garnered huge media attention.
And now he’s back in the headlines, but for all the wrong reasons.
The mask of Zorro has become the mask of sorrow.
After Paulo Fonseca was handed a nine-month ban, West Ham co-owner David Sullivan would have been thanking his lucky stars that he didn’t appoint the hot-headed manager to replace Moyes.
West Ham United fans should be very excited about one of our reported summer transfer window plans.
The January window was a very quiet one at West Ham, with Evan Ferguson the only new player being brought in.
