After its draw against Juventus in the Champions League (0-0), AS Monaco (10th) returned to the championship with one idea in mind: to win again, which had not happened since November 29 against PSG (1-0). Facing Stade Rennais (6th), Sébastien Pocognoli started in 3-4-3 with Denis Zakaria in defense and Ansu Fati aligned in attack with Balogun and Golovin. Opposite, Habib Beye could count on the presence of Jérémy Jacquet in defense and counted on the Embolo-Lepaul duo on the offensive front of his 3-5-2.
The players from the Principality club were the first to strike. After Merlin lost the ball, ASM recovered the high ball. Golovin shifted Zakaria, who was on the attack. The Monegasque captain then curled his ball from the right to the edge of the area, but finally hit the Samba post (16th). More enterprising, the Pocognoli troop saw their efforts rewarded before the break. Found by Teze with a long vertical pass, Balogun slipped the ball towards Ansu Fati on his right. Forgotten by Brassier, the former Barcelona player deceived Samba with a cross shot (33rd, 1-0). ASM was even close to the break, but Samba worked perfectly on Balogun’s recovery (45th + 5).
AS Monaco’s wake-up call has finally sounded!
In the second half, Akliouche replaced Fati. The French international (5 caps) immediately stood out. After a one-two with Golovin, he moved away on the left side towards Ouattara. The left-back’s shot was deflected off the post, before the ball returned to Golovin, then Akliouche, who just had to push the ball for the break (50th, 2-0). A second hard blow for Rennes, who then reduced the gap thanks to Lepaul… before Mr. Buquet canceled his goal for an offside by Al-Tamari (53rd).
The score then got tougher for the Bretons, when Biereth threw Coulibaly behind the back of Aït Boudlal. The Monegasque midfielder then adjusted Samba to almost seal the victory in Monaco (60th, 3-0). Rennes thought they had the opportunity to save their honor, with a penalty, before the match referee canceled his decision following another offside (71st). On the contrary, Monaco concluded this evening with a fourth goal, signed Stanis Idumbo after a cross from Biereth (90th, 4-0). At the end of a successful performance against apathetic Rennais, AS Monaco rediscovered the taste of victory after two months without success in Ligue 1. The Monegasque club, however, remains in the soft underbelly of the ranking, but temporarily returns to a unit from Lorient (9th). Rennes misses the opportunity to pass Lille, who will go to Lyon on Sunday afternoon. Now it’s time for the Coupe de France for these two teams, with a trip to Strasbourg for ASM and a clash at the Vélodrome against Marseille for the Bretons.
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– UPDATE
