An unsinkable AS Monaco beat Lille to tighthen their grip on second! | OneFootball

Long threatened by a dangerous LOSC on the break, the Rouge et Blanc made the difference after halftime, finally obtaining a fourth win in a row (1-0) to move six points ahead of the Northerners in the table.

A victory to go second! Patient before making the difference in the second half, the Rouge et Blanc won against Lille at the Stade Louis-II (1-0), under the eyes of H.S.H. Prince Albert II and President Dmitry Rybolovlev, on the occasion of the club’s 2400th match in the top flight. Match report✍️

The President of AS Monaco Dmitry Rybolovlev, Stéphane Morandi, member of the Board of Directors of AS Monaco, and H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco

The context 📅

For this second big match in what is a decisive week for the Rouge et Blanc, after an important win in Brest (0-2), it was LOSC which landed at the Stade Louis-II. It’s a ground which has offered  very little success for Les Dogues recently (11 games without a win), even if the Northern side is in great form, and remained just three points behind the Monegasques in the standings.

I was impressed by this LOSC team which showed very good things against Aston Villa in the Conference League. They have a great coach, who is very experienced, in Paulo Fonseca, whom I have already had the opportunity to face in the past. I think they can say the same for us, so it will be a very interesting match.

The eleven 👥

In the absence of the suspended Wilfried Singo, coach Adi Hütter opted to set his side up in a 4-4-2. Thilo Kehrer returned to central defence, while Krépin Diatta started on the left in a four-man defense. On the bench on Sunday, Wissam Ben Yedder started up front alongside Folarin Balogun.

The scenario 🎞

This big match started with a first chance for Lille on a solo run by Gudmundsson, whose attempt was captured by Radoslaw Majecki (3′). The Monégasque goalkeeper was again vigilant on a deflected cross by the Iceland internationalHaraldsson, which he was forced to punch clear (15′). AS Monaco first responded with a powerful strike from Takumi Minamino which flirted with the bar (20′), then it was Denis Zakaria who tried his effort from range (22′).

Plenty of chances, but no goals

The target was missed again, as on a header by Youssouf Fofana at a corner (27′). Before that, Folarin Balogun had tried to pick out his captain with a ball in behind, but without success (23′). Control of the game and the chances were now coming for our Rouge et Blanc, who were nevertheless struggling to find the breakthrough. And LOSC took the opportunity to attack on the counter, like on a run by Haraldsson, who eventually missed the target (42′).

The goalkeepers (and the post) take over

The halftime break thus came with the match still scoreless. But upon the start of the second half, the Northern side showed themselves to be dangerous again with a header from Gudmundsson which hit the post (47′), then a curling effort by Angel Gomes (48′). The target was also getting closer for Adi Hütter’s men, notably on a volley by Maghnes Akliouche cleared off his line by Lucas Chevalier (55′).

The breakthrough comes… thanks to Youss’!

But it was finally at the end of a crazy run that Youssouf Fofana found the opening, scoring with a low shot into the bottom corner (1-0, 61′)! It was cause for celebration in the Stade Louis-II which exulted over the third goal scored by our number 19 this season in Ligue 1. The Rouge et Blanc are even close to a second in a one-on-one between Ben Yedder and Chevalier which was won by the Lille goalkeeper (69′).

A win to go second for the team’s 2400th match in Ligue 1

Then there was a shot from a tight angle attempted by Zak’ (74′). In the meantime, Breel Embolo was celebrating his return to the pitch at home, cheered on by a fanbase happy to see him on the pitch again. It was a winning comeback, since the Monegasques would hold on until the end, despite a last chance by Cabella (81′). Vanderson even tried his luck from range (87′), before the referee blew for full time.

It was game over, AS Monaco won against LOSC in its 2400th match in the top fligth (1-0), and moved a little closer to qualifying for the Champions League, now with five points in hand and in second in Ligue 1. DAGHE MUNEGU! 🇲🇨

Key moments 🎥

3′: Gudmundsson’s shot is finally stopped by Majecki 15′: A deflected cross by Haraldsson is punched clear by Majecki 20′:  A powerful shot by Minamino grazes Chevalier’s crossbar 22′: A long shot by Zakaria is captured by Chevalier 23′: Balogun picks out for Ben Yedder who comes up short against the Lille goalkeeper 27′: A header by Fofana at a corner flies just over the bar 42′: Haraldsson makes a deep run, but his effort goes wide of the post 47′: Gudmundsson’s header hits the right post 48′: Gomes’ curling shot from a corner is captured by Majecki 55′: Akliouche’s volley is saved by Chevalier 61′: Fofana’s well-struck effort finds the corner (1-0) 69′:  A one-on-one between Ben Yedder and Chevalier comes to nothing 74′: Zakaria’s shot from a tight angle is blocked by Chevalier 81′: Cabella’s effort flies over the bar 87′: A long shot by Vanderson is saved

📋 Match details:

Wednesday April 24 – Stade Louis-II

Ligue 1 – Matchday 29: AS Monaco 1-0 Lille

Halftime: 0-0

Goals: Fofana (61′) for AS Monaco

Bookings: Akliouche (38′) for AS Monaco; David (54′), Bouaddi (66′) for Lille

AS Monaco: Majecki – Vanderson, Maripán, Kehrer, Diatta – Akliouche (Coulibaly, 87′), Fofana, Zakaria, Minamino – Balogun (Embolo, 68′), Ben Yedder © (Camara, 83′)

Substitutes: Köhn, C.Henrique, Ouattara, Salisu, Camara, Coulibaly, Diop, Magassa, Embolo

Manager: Adi Hütter

Lille: Chevalier – Tiago Santos, Yoro, Diakité, Ismaily – André (Bouaddi, 57′), Bentaleb – Gudmundsson (Yazici, 66′), Gomes, Haraldsson (Zhegrova, 66′) – David (Cabella, 66′)