Ligue 1: Kohn’s heroics ensure AS Monaco leave Le Havre with a point
AS Monaco ultimately snatched a draw from their difficult away clash against Le Havre thanks to Philipp Kohn’s masterful save to deny Samuel Grandsir’s penalty at the death.
The Match
Heading into this one, Adi Hutter knew this wasn’t going to be an easy match to navigate against this tough to beat Le Havre. And so it proved, as the home team, who were unbeaten in their previous three, offered extremely stern resistance to Les Monegasques throughout the 0-0 draw.
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Le Havre began the match positively in front of their vocal supporters and enjoyed the ascendancy in the early running, as they looked especially dangerous on the counter.
ASM eventually settled into proceedings, which led to them unleashing a flurry of chances from the likes of Denis Zakaria, Youssouf Fofana, Ismail Jakobs and Krepin Diatta.
Nabil Alioui then had a decent attempt before the interval for Luka Elsner’s team without success, meaning both sides went into the sheds level.
Racing out of the blocks for the second stanza, Zakaria unleashed a volley that was just off target to get the ball rolling.
Kohn was called into action shortly after to deny Antoine Joujou and Alioui, as both teams traded spells of dominance in their quest for victory. Despite Monaco looking the more dangerous outfit, they struggled to find a way past the defiant La Havre rearguard.
The game then ended with a dramatic twist, for Le Havre were awarded a penalty following a VAR review in the dying embers. But thankfully for ASM, Kohn produced a spectacular save from former Monaco man Grandsir to ensure Hutter’s men didn’t leave empty handed from the Stade Oceane.
Hutter’s Debrief
“Yes it’s a good point I think in the end. When I look at the match as a whole, both teams deserved to at least secure a draw. I must also compliment Le Havre this evening for having defended so well against us. We didn’t play fast enough, and without being able to find the solution to break the opposing defensive lines,” the Austrian reflected.
“In the end, it’s still a second clean sheet in a row, so on that level I’m satisfied. But with the ball we have to do a lot better in the coming weeks, because we didn’t work many situations. We will work on this. Philipp Kohn saved us the result thanks to his penalty save.”
Key Stats
By the numbers, the fact ASM held the edge in terms of open play expected goals (0.66 to 0.62), possession (63% to 37%), total shots (10 to 9), passes in the opposition half (273 to 122) and duels won (54 to 53) indicated they still produced a solid display.
Up Next
The international break is up next for Monaco, who occupy third place in the Ligue 1 standings. Upon their return, a colossal, top of the table encounter with Paris Saint-Germain awaits at the Parc des Princes, where a win would see them draw level on points with the heavyweights of European football.
“Many players from both teams will now go away during the international break. Everyone will come back late and we won’t have much time to prepare for the clash against them. But we will do everything to get a result there,” explained Hutter.