The reactions of Köhn, Caio Henrique and Zakaria after Marseille | OneFootball

Very happy to have won a key victory against OM in the big match of the 29th round of Ligue 1 (3-0), the defender, the goalkeeper and the captain of the Rouge et Blanc spoke in the mixed zone.

They did it! Solid from A to Z against a dangerous Marseille team in the first quarter of an hour, the AS Monaco players obtained a crucial win at the Stade Louis-II (3-0). It is therefore delighted to collect three points and to recover second place in the table, that Philipp Köhn, Caio Henrique and Denis Zakaria spoke with the media post-match. 🎙️

Good evening, Philipp. What do you think of your performance and that of the team?

After the match in Brest, it was a long week for me, quite difficult I must admit. But I was keen to do much better and I think it worked out well today. I’m happy to bring home a clean sheet tonight, but above all we’re very happy to have won these three points as a team! It was a match that we knew would be decisive, and we are now looking ahead to the next one against Strasbourg.

Tell us about your incredible save on Amine Gouiri’s shot…

(He smiles) It was happening very quickly at that point! You have to wait for the right moment, in the right position, to be able to intervene. For Thilo (Kehrer), it was too difficult to intervene, so I moved quickly, and in that case, you also need a bit of luck to get it.

It's a truly crucial victory, especially with a three-goal win over a direct competitor. We'll now celebrate and enjoy this important victory before focusing on the next match. For now, we're second, and we want it to stay that way!

Philipp KöhnOn the importance of today's win

It was a good reaction by me, and I’m glad I avoided that goal. For a goalkeeper, it’s like scoring! Especially since it was at a crucial moment, because if it’s 2-1 on the scoreboard in the 67th minute, it could have been very close until the end. It was a good moment to be decisive, that’s why I celebrated!

Overall, it was a great defensive performance tonight!

We knew it was going to be tough against them because they like to have possession. But we waited for the right moment each time to create chances and score. Everyone played a great game, and tonight we won as a team! We deserved this victory.

Is this a great achievement in the Champions League race?

It’s a truly crucial victory, especially with a three-goal win over a direct competitor. We’ll now celebrate and enjoy this important victory before focusing on the next match. For now, we’re second, and we want it to stay that way! This is very important for us to get back into the Champions League, so it’s all the more satisfying to have won this match and kept a clean sheet at home.

Tell us about the play where you kept out Luis Henrique’s ball?

It’s the same, everything happens very quickly at that moment, and it’s something that’s difficult to work on in training. So we try to make the right decision, and I chose to gently deflect the ball wide of the goal. I have to review the play; there’s obviously an element of luck involved too, but I’m happy to have avoided that goal.

Monaco is a special place, and I'm very proud to be a player for this club with such a great history! We accomplished some great things last year by returning to the Champions League, and this season we're celebrating AS Monaco's centenary, so it's important for us to repeat that

Philipp KöhnOn the desire to qualify for the Champions League!

What are you most proud of tonight?

I’m really proud of the team’s performance in bouncing back from the defeat in Brest. That last match wasn’t a good one for us, so we’re even happier to deserve the victory tonight. Monaco is a special place, and I’m very proud to be a player for this club with such a great history!

We accomplished some great things last year by returning to the Champions League, and this season we’re celebrating AS Monaco’s centenary, so it’s important for us to repeat that. There are still some important matches to come.

The reaction of Caio Henrique

Good evening, Caio. What do you take away from this victory against Marseille?

We won another derby. It’s important to take three points at home; it’s a pleasure! We were very solid defensively and played a great team performance, as we were also good up front. We were able to pull together, so we’re very happy, even though there are still five games left and we still need to take as many points as possible.

In what areas did you manage to make the difference?

It’s always difficult when you play against a team like Marseille; there’s less space to exploit. But with the ball and thanks to our composure, we played a great game, scoring three goals. It’s an important victory for us!

I think we're very strong at home; we have already picked up a lot of points here (35 points of 53), We'll have to do it away from home now, too, because it's very important in this final stretch of the season.

Caio HenriqueOn the team's strong play at Stade Louis-II

What do we have to do now until the end of the season?

We’ll keep working because the next match against Strasbourg will also be very tough, as they’re behind us in the standings. We’ll need a result to keep them at bay. We’ll then travel to Saint-Etienne, who are fighting to stay up, and the last match against Lens will undoubtedly be difficult as well. As I said, we want to win as many points as possible to finish in second place!

What makes you stand out from your direct competitors now?

I think we’re very strong at home; we have already picked up a lot of points here (35 points of 53), We’ll have to do it away from home now, too, because it’s very important in this final stretch of the season.

How are you feeling personally?

My sense of comfort is starting to return little by little. I feel good physically and mentally now, which is great. As the matches go by, I’m getting better on the pitch, so I want to keep this momentum going.

The reaction of Denis Zakaria

Good evening, Denis. How do you feel after this great victory?

It was important for us to show a reaction after the defeat in Brest. So winning 3-0 was a great way to respond, and we’re very happy to pick up these three points. Scoring three goals against Olympique de Marseille, knowing the quality of this team and its strengths, is impressive! It was a great performance from us.

You are now back in second place in Ligue 1…

This is the position we want to be in, so we will do everything to take as many points as possible from now on in order to finish in this position at the end of the championship. But it is only three points tonight, so we will have to be serious until the end..

We knew that Marseille is a team that plays well with the ball and that we would be under pressure at certain moments in the match. So we were able to be patient and hold on, even though it must be said that Philipp (Köhn) did us good with his save!

Denis ZakariaOn the team absorbing pressure

It’s always better to finish second than third, but our main goal is to play in the Champions League again, so we’ll do everything we can to be there! Winning against Marseille is bound to send a signal, but we want to stay focused on ourselves, and there are five games left once again, so nothing is decided yet. We’ll have to perform well in these five matches. It’s up to us to work hard.

Why did you exercise caution at the start of the match?

We knew that Marseille is a team that plays well with the ball and that we would be under pressure at certain moments in the match. So we were able to be patient and hold on, even though it must be said that Philipp (Köhn) did us good with his save! Then we knew how to play our game and score the goals we needed.

How did you feel about Philipp?

I felt he was doing very well this week in training, even though he had a difficult match in Brest last weekend. He responded in the best possible way, showing us his qualities, so we’re very happy for him.

It's a beautiful goal, even if I was a bit lucky it went under the bar. I wanted to put it high, so I was lucky it went in. It was important to score that third goal, so I'm happy I scored it.

It’s a beautiful goal, even if I was a bit lucky it went under the bar. I wanted to put it high, so I was lucky it went in. It was important to score that third goal, so I’m happy I scored it. A goal and an assist? (He smiles) I don’t know if it happens to me often, but I’m happy it helped the team anyway.