Milan failure to Lyon favourite: Emotional Fonseca celebrates 13 straight wins

Things may not have gone well for Paulo Fonseca at AC Milan, but now he is very much a fan favourite at his current club Lyon.

Fonseca was hired by Milan to replace Stefano Pioli before the start of the 2024-25 season, but he didn’t even make it into 2025. The Portuguese was sacked after a 1-1 draw at home against Roma on December 29, and his compatriot Sergio Conceicao replaced him.

There have been reflections since from Fonseca on what maybe didn’t work, but football never stops and so he chose to take the Lyon job back in Ligue 1, a league he had more success in given the praise he got for the job he did at Lille.

Things didn’t start brilliantly: Fonseca was handed a nine-month ban in March 2025 for a violent confrontation with referee Benoît Millot during a Ligue 1 match against Brest, after the coach was sent off for dissent following a VAR review.

Fast-forward to now, Lyon are in excellent form and most recently beat Nice 2-0 on Sunday, taking them to within six points of second-place PSG, who in turn are one point behind RC Lens. Fonseca’s team have now managed 13 straight wins in all competitions, including every game in 2026.

L'émotion de Paulo Fonseca face aux supporters 🥹

Quelle saison de l'OL et quelle saison de son coach portugais. #OLOGCN pic.twitter.com/KI9GaDfK0q

— L1+ (@ligue1plus) February 15, 2026

The fans thanked the team after the full-time whistle yesterday and unfurled a banner showing their appreciation for the manager, which made him visibly emotional.