Ligue 1: AS Monaco overcome AS Saint-Etienne to open their season in style
© AS Monaco
AS Monaco kicked off their centenary season in fine style by recording a strong 1-0 over AS Saint-Etienne in a packed Stade Louis II under the eyes of President Dmitry Rybolovlev.
The Match
Fresh from their accomplished victory over Barcelona in the Joan Gamper Trophy, AS Monaco carried their momentum into their Ligue 1 opener, as Adi Hutter interestingly started Breel Embolo and Folarin Balogun up front, just like they did vs. Barca.
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Jumping out of the gate impressively, ASM almost found the back of the net early when Balogun came close inside five minutes.
Les Verts immediately looked to stamp their mark too, as Yunis Abdelhamid and Ibrahim Sissoko launched shots, but Philipp Kohn was up to the task to deny the duo.
A crazy section of the match then unfolded, where both sides had goals ruled out for offside, with VAR intervening to chalk off Takumi Minamino and Sissoko’s strikes.
Les Monegasques weren’t to be denied shortly after when Minamino’s masterful chip was eventually given the all-clear following a VAR review to put the home team ahead.
While ASSE looked to instantly reply, the score remained 1-0 to Monaco at the interval.
The second half began with Mathieu Cafaro firing off the first notable attempt before Eliesse Ben Seghir thought he’d won a penalty, only for VAR to overturn referee Clement Turpin’s decision.
AS Monaco kept searching to extend their advantage, but couldn’t give themselves the breathing room they craved. More chaos would arise when Saint-Etienne had another goal taken off after a VAR review.
Despite all the drama and controversy, Monaco ultimately did enough to secure all three points to reign supreme in their entertaining first Ligue 1 fixture.
Hutter’s Debrief
“I’m happy with this 1-0, because the game was generally balanced, even if we could have scored more. But I want to compliment Saint-Etienne for their performance as a team promoted to the elite. In any case, I’m happy to start this season with a home win. Congratulations to the team for these three points,” explained the Austrian tactician.
“We were competitive in the first half, even if it wasn’t easy to come back after the 0-3 win in Barcelona. It’s sometimes difficult to come down from a success like that, so I’m all the more pleased with this victory and this clean sheet, especially for Philipp Kohn. We are not yet at the top level physically, some players even had some cramps like Eliesse Ben Seghir, who is returning from the Games with Morocco, and Denis Zakaria, who was injured for two months until the Euro. But our objective is to improve athletically.
“Our supporters are always behind us, and we know that Saint-Etienne is a historic club in the championship, with a lot of fans behind them. There was a great atmosphere tonight at the Stade Louis II. We are delighted, and it’s thanks to the support of both teams, so thank you to them.”
Key Stats
By the numbers, the fact ASM held the ascendancy in terms of expected goals (1.99 to 0.48), total shots (17 to 11), shots inside the box (14 to 5), big chances created (5 to 0), possession (62% to 38%) and passes in the opposition half (237 to 68) illustrated they were good value for the win.
Lyon Awaits
Having begun the new Ligue 1 season as intended, up next for Hutter’s Monaco is a tough away day against Olympique Lyonnais, which will be another terrific test to see where they’re at.