Currently grasping for air in Ligue 1, Monaco may be able to enjoy some European success with a win against Club Brugge. Their next Champions League match is tonight at 6:55 PM at the Stade Louis-II.
AS Monaco will receive Belgian side Club Brugge at home tonight, Tuesday, November 6th for the 4th match in Champions League group play. The match is somewhat of a last ditch effort to stay afloat mathematically in Group A.
Group A
Borussia Dortmund’s nine points lead Group A while Atletico Madrid trails in second place with six points. AS Monaco and Club Brugge have one point each. Should Dortmund beat Atletico, the winner of Monaco vs. Brugge could open up a window to overtaking Atletico in a face off. A tie, however, would certainly end those hopes.
ASM’s current state of affairs
At the moment, things look pretty bad for the home team. After another L1 loss to Reims this past Saturday (0-1), Thierry Henry’s men look even more in disarray than when he took the reigns 3 weeks ago.
Aside from not being boosted by his arrival, the team appears to actually have gotten worse. After 14 winless matches (5 ties, 9 losses), ASM is comfortably seated in the relegation zone at 19th. The most remarkable insight to the roster is the number of injured (10+ players).
Speaking of injuries, Henry will have to add two starters to the list. According to an official communiqué, Aleksandr Golovin (right ankle) and Andrea Raggi (back) are unavailable. They will be sorely missed in this must-win match for Monaco. Other injured players include:
> Willem Geubbels, Rony Lopes and Pietro Pellegri (in recovery)
> Danijel Subasic (continued thigh reinforcement)
> Kevin N’Doram (back to training with fragile elbow)
> Jean-Eudes Aholou (to undergo foot surgery)
> Adama Traoré (left thigh injury)
Thierry Henry in the hot seat
Following the loss in Reims, Henry called the match “more worrisome than the previous ones.” “We neither created chances nor played well.” The observations from the skipper are realistic, but perhaps overly so for a team and public in desperate need of a lifeline. A qualification in the UCL might just do the trick.
The official match roster per AS Monaco’s twitter:
🔴⚪️ Le groupe pour Brugge 🔴⚪️
▶️ Gardiens
Benaglio, L.Badiashile
▶️ Défenseurs
B.Badiashile, Barreca, Glik, Henrichs, Jemerson, Sidibé, Touré
▶️ Milieux
Ait-Bennasser, Chadli, Grandsir, Mboula, Tielemans, Massengo, Diop
▶️ Attaquants
Falcao, Sylla, Gouano#ASMCLU pic.twitter.com/FbRkTmiPt1— AS Monaco 🇲🇨 (@AS_Monaco) November 5, 2018