A PHYSIO has been banned for NINE months after punching a fan during a mass brawl between Marseille and Nice in August.
Marseille employee Pablo Fernandez is alleged to have hospitalised a pitch invader after video footage surfaced online.
As reported by Goal, Fernandez has been suspended for the rest of the current season for appearing to punch a random fan in the chest.
The alleged incident occurred during Marseille’s chaotic trip to Ligue 1 rivals Nice in August.
A brawl started between Marseille players and Nice fans after ex-West Ham midfielder Dimitri Payet was struck by a fan’s bottle.
The Marseille star launched the object back into the Nice supporters and his reaction saw dozens of thugs enter the playing surface.
Among the chaos, a man wearing an orange bib – alleged to be Fernandez – ran towards the hooligans and decked one of them.
The man thought to be Fernandez then ran away from the situation and it’s not clear why he lashed out on that particular fan.
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Rumours suggested the physio could be banned for YEARS for the alleged punch, which left the fan needing hospital treatment.
It’s not clear at this stage whether Fernandez will face criminal charges or what Marseille’s internal punishment will be, if any.
Both teams have received various punishments for the unsavoury scenes witnessed at the Stade de Nice on August 22.
Nice have been docked a point for their role, with the suspension of a further point penalty put in place to deter future misdemeanours.
They have also been ordered to play their next two games behind closed doors after hosting Bordeaux without fans on August 28.
One of those games will be the replay of the Marseille clash – a match Nice were leading 1-0 until the shocking brawl unfolded.
Two Marseille players have also received punishments, with defender Alvaro Gonzalez handed a two-game ban for provoking fans.
And Payet has been given a suspended one-game ban for throwing the bottle back into the crowd.
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
