Welcome to Olympique Lyon, European soccer's wildest reality show. Headbutting referees, cowboy hats, bullying acquisitions, financial problems, lengthy suspensions, relegation threats and more - it's all happening at the historic Ligue 1 club. Their ongoing Europa League campaign has taken a backseat to the chaos going on everywhere else.
At the center of it, on the field at least, is Tanner Tessmann, the U.S. men's national team midfielder.
As the chaos has unfolded around him, Tessmann's recent push into the club's starting XI has been overshadowed. After a difficult start to the season, Tessmann is now a regular in Paulo Fonseca's starting XI, having shown his quality for both club and country in recent months. Despite everything threatening the club, Tessmann has seemingly gotten stronger, showing why Lyon spent big to sign him from Venezia this summer.
Suddenly, though, everything is up in the air at Groupama Stadium. Fonseca finds himself in hot water after attacking a referee, earning himself a nine-month ban. The club was threatened with relegation in November and have already served a January transfer ban due to their financial issues. American owner John Textor, who also owns Crystal Palace and Botafogo, has gone to war with PSG brass and continues to poke at French soccer's biggest club.
Meanwhile, Tessmann keeps chugging along as he fights for a World Cup spot. He's already impressed USMNT coach Mauricio Pochettino, for sure, but surviving the chaos currently engulfing Lyon might just be his biggest test yet.