Lyon threaten to sue fans after manager Rudi Garcia depicted as a clown

Lyon manager Rudi Garcia

It's being called "clowngate".

In one of European football's stranger stories, French club Lyon have issued a statement threatening action against their own fans for abusive comments or imagery online.

Primarily, they seem to be responding to images fans have been making depicting manager Rudi Garcia as a clown.

The statement, on the club's website, says: "Olympique Lyonnais informs that the club will now file a complaint for all the content, posted or shared on its social networks, which may constitute insult, defamation, threat, harassment or incitement to hatred or violence."

Statement from Lyon

The statement goes on: "It is our duty to mobilize to fight against discrimination and hate speech, online and in the field."

As per French newspaper L'Equipe, the statement from the club is a response to "publication of caricatures of Rudi Garcia made up into a clown on Twitter".

Either way, some fans don't seem to have heeded the warnings. The replies have been hijacked with a deluge of images like the one below.

It's a bit like that bit at the end of Joker, isn't it? Except, hopefully, less violent.

We can only guess that's a comment from disgruntled fans on the Spanish manager's competency, rather than any observation on the size of his footwear.

You could say though that he has been given big shoes to fill after taking over from Sylvinho and, before him, Bruno Genesio. Under those managers, Lyon consistently finished in the top four, but now sit seventh in Ligue 1.

An impressive win over Juventus in the Champions League last-16 first leg last night could buy the manager a little more favour though. Lyon have not progressed beyond the Champions League last 16 since 2010, but they made a good dig at it last night.

In the meantime, we'll have to see if any official action is taken. It could be a media circus.