PLAYER RATINGS | Monaco 3-1 Le Havre: Eric Dier nets on debut in comfortable win | OneFootball

Ligue 1 McDonald’s, Matchday 1, 16/08/25

AS Monaco got their Ligue 1 campaign underway with a comfortable 3-1 win against Le Havre AC. In his first game for his new club, Eric Dier got on the scoresheet.

The Match

Christian Mawissa’s misplaced pass inside the opening 10 seconds of the game set the tone for a clumsy first half from Monaco. A lack of precision in the final third prevented them from regularly troubling the Le Havre goal. Mika Biereth was the first to go close, dragging just wide from outside the box, having pounced on Arouna Sangante’s misplaced pass.

Les Monégasques needed a slice of luck to open the scoring. Aleksandr Golovin was slid in down the side of the Havrais defence and, in trying to flash the ball across the face of goal, saw his cross deflected in by Le Havre defender Gautier Lloris.

Monaco, who were without the likes of Breel Embolo, reportedly nearing a move away from the club, Krépin Diatta, Mohamed Salisu, Paul Pogba, Ansu Fati, and Folarin Balogun, could have doubled their lead before the break. They will feel hard done by not having been awarded a penalty for a handball inside the Le Havre box, and just before the break, Maghnes Akliouche struck the post with a volley.

Monaco did get their second, and it came through debutant Dier. The Englishman’s close-range header from Lamine Camara’s corner was powerful but should have been kept out by Mory Diaw, who allowed it to trickle over the line.

But just moments later, the Principality club let the visitors back in. Vanderson, off the bench just seconds earlier, lost the ball and then allowed Rassoul Ndiaye to cut inside and curl into Lukas Hradecky’s far corner.

Monaco go top of Ligue 1

Akliouche then did get his goal, tapping into the empty net from a Denis Zakaria ball across the face of the goal. The third knocked the wind out of Le Havre, and with Monaco content just to manage the game, the game concluded with little incident, with only a deflected effort from Felix Mambimbi to speak of.

The result sees Les Monégasques go above Stade Rennais and Olympique Lyonnais, both of whom won by only a single goal.

Monaco player ratings

Lukas Hradecky – 5

Caio Henrique – 5

Christian Mawissa – 6

Eric Dier – 8

Bar one missed pass out from the back, it was a very controlled performance from the Englishman on debut. Despite strong competition in his position, he has quickly established himself as the first-choice option and showed why, displaying leadership and composure. He can also be a goal threat, too, as he showed with his well-taken header.

Jordan Teze – 5

Denis Zakaria – 5

Lamine Camara – 4

Certainly one of the Senegal international’s weaker performances since joining Monaco. The midfielder was clumsy, missing simple passes and sometimes leaving his back line exposed as a result. Withdrawn just after the hour mark, his assist for Dier somewhat redeemed for his general lack of precision on the night.

Aleksandr Golovin – 6

Takumi Minamino – 5

Maghnes Akliouche – 7

Mika Biereth – 5

Le Havre selected player ratings

Arouna Sangante – 3

Gautier Lloris – 3

Too frequently out of position, he allowed Monaco to get down his side on several occasions. His own goal had an element of luck about it, although his positioning was once again suspect at the start of that move, whilst he was caught too high on Monaco’s third.

Rassoul Ndiaye – 6

GFFN | Luke Entwistle – reporting from Monaco