PLAYER RATINGS | Lille 1-0 Monaco: Les Monégasques stung by Olivier Giroud’s late winner | OneFootball

Ligue 1 McDonald’s, Gameweek 2, 24/08/25

Lille OSC secured their first win of the season, beating AS Monaco courtesy of a last-minute winner from Olivier Giroud.

The Match

Monaco found joy whipping in crosses in the opening exchanges. Caio Henrique delivered an inviting back-post cross to Maghnes Akliouche, but the winger struck the ball into the ground and it bounced safely into the arms of Berke Özer. Akliouche then had a chance to set up Folarin Balogun, but again the finishing failed Les Monégasques.

Monaco again came close following disastrous defending from Lille. Balogun drifted wide and to the right, Alexsandro went to cover, and Nathan Ngoy followed his centre-back partner. A wide open space was left down the centre for Aleksandr Golovin to release Akliouche. The France youth international stormed forward and fired, and again Özer was there to deny him. Takumi Minamino grabbed the rebound, but he was forced wide, and his cross couldn’t find Balogun.

Ngoy looked to make up for his earlier mistake by whipping a long ball over the top of the Monaco defence and into the feet of Hákon Arnar Haraldsson. Lille’s no. 10 cushioned the ball, but then released a woeful shot that whipped wide. There was a brief spell of pressure from the hosts, but Monaco would end the half as the better side, as Lille kept committing mistakes in their build-up and inviting their guests into promising positions.

There was a tetchy feeling to the second half and a stop-start rhythm, as Lille players frequently went to ground following physical defending from Monaco. Ngal’ayel Mukau would be a victim of this and had to be taken off on a stretcher following a tackle from Henrique.

Ayyoub Bouaddi flashed a venomous shot from distance, which was diverted wide by Christian Mawissa’s reflex intervention. However, the crowd were whipped into life, which bled onto the pitch, as Lille began to grow into the game. Olivier Giroud’s eyes lit up when Félix Coreia delivered a cross into the six-yard box. The striker timed his run to perfection, arriving late into the box and leaping forward with a falling volley, but the shot whistled wide.

Lille kept pushing, and in injury time a double chance fell to Bouaddi and Haraldsson, but neither could force the issue. It would fall to Giroud to settle the match; the striker was found in the box by the substitute Mathis Fernandez-Pardo in the 91st minute. The 2018 World Cup winner controlled the ball, swivelled, and then fired home to win the match with Lille’s first and only shot on target.

There would be time for one more for Lille when Fernandez-Pardo was brought down in the box by Mawissa. However, Giroud’s usual composure fled him, and the striker scooped his shot over the bar. Mika Biereth would have one last chance for Monaco in the remaining seconds, but was unable to rescue the point.

Lille Player Ratings

Berke Özer – 6

Romain Perraud – 7

Alexsandro – 7

Nathan Ngoy – 4

The centre-back always seemed to be in the wrong position throughout the first half. His decisions kept putting the team under pressure, and he was somewhat lucky that Monaco were so toothless. However, he did put in a far more composed performance in the second half.

Thomas Meunier – 6

Ngal’ayel Mukau – 5

Benjamin André – 6

Ayyoub Bouaddi – 8

It’s very easy to forget that Bouaddi is only 17. He had a few minutes at the start of the game where he rushed his actions, but after that he was probably the most composed player on the pitch. He sees danger before everyone else and snuffs it out. He also showed a more attacking side of his game and looked to help spark Lille’s second-half resurgence.

Félix Correia – 4

Olivier Giroud – 8

The veteran finds himself on the scoresheet for the second game in a row. He was starved of service until late in the second half, but showed that he only needs half a chance to threaten the goal. The penalty miss was the only negative. Out-of-possession Giroud worked tirelessly.

Hákon Arnar Harlaldsson – 5

Monaco Player Ratings

Lukas Hradecky – 5

Caio Henrqiue – 7

An impressive performance down the left of Monaco’s defence. He looked dangerous in the first half and was able to keep Mukau and Correia quiet. It didn’t feel like a coincidence that Lille were only able to find joy down his wing when he was replaced by Kassoum Ouattara in the 85th minute.

Christian Mawissa – 3

A player who looked composed for most of the game, but his composure was certainly tested late in the match. He almost threw the game away when he brought down Fernandez-Pardo, and was lucky that Giroud missed.

Eric Dier – 5

Jordan Teze – 5

Denis Zakaria – 5

Lamine Camara – 5

Takumi Minamino – 4

Aleksandr Golovin – 5

Maghnes Akliouche – 4

The winger registered Monaco’s only shot on target early in the first half. It was hardly his best game, even though he looked threatening during the opening exchanges. His influence waned in the second half as Lille took control, and it left you wondering how different this game could have been if he had been a touch more clinical.

Folarin Balogun – 4

GFFN | Nick Hartland