Ligue 1: AS Monaco record dominant away win vs. Lyon
Having not won away at Olympique Lyonnais since 2017, AS Monaco’s 0-2 victory at the Groupama Stadium saw them break this streak in fine fashion.
The Match
Wanting to stick to the formula that powered them to success in their Ligue 1 opener against AS Saint-Etienne, Adi Hutter picked an unchanged side for this encounter.
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Gaining the upper hand early, Monaco produced some decent openings through Denis Zakaria, Eliesse Ben Seghir and Lamine Camara.
Although Les Monegasques controlled possession nicely and were the most dangerous team on their way to establishing a strong foothold in the game, Lyon still posed a threat going forward to keep the Monaco backline honest.
ASM continued to push leading up to the interval, however, as Takumi Minamino, Ben Seghir and Vanderson had some solid attempts. But ultimately the scores remained level at the break in a half where the visitors were clearly the better side.
Eager to carry their momentum into the second stanza, Monaco did just that, as they were eventually rewarded for their efforts when Ben Seghir smartly found the back of the net in the 65th minute after coming close on multiple occasions.
Camara then doubled Les Rouge et Blanc’s advantage following a super delivery from Kassoum Ouattara before the Senegalese star disappointingly received a red card in the closing stages.
Monaco nonetheless held on to record a famous triumph while crucially keeping a clean sheet and maintaining their perfect start to the campaign.
Hutter’s Debrief
“First of all, we played today in a fantastic atmosphere here in Lyon, in this magnificent stadium, against a team that finished second in the second half of last season. We really wanted to win this game, but now we are already focused on preparing for the reception of Lens at the Stade Louis II,” reflected the Austrian tactician.
“We fully deserved this victory in my opinion, after such a successful performance. We kept control of this match and created many opportunities to score. So I am very happy with this success and pleased with our performance.
“We have a very long season ahead of us, with the Champions League starting right after the first international break. That’s why we need all the players. In the first half we were good, but we lacked efficiency in the final third, which meant we missed a lot of chances.”
Key Stats
By the numbers, the fact ASM held the ascendancy in terms of expected goals (2.26 to 0.03), total shots (21 to 1), shots on target (6 to 0), shots inside the box (14 to 0), passes in the opposition half (229 to 110), touches in the opposition box (28 to 14) and overall duels won (59 to 49) illustrated what a force Monaco were to be reckoned with.
Lens Awaits
Following this latest outstanding performance, all eyes will now turn to their massive clash with RC Lens at the Stade Louis II, where they’ll once again need to be on top of their game to claim all three points against Will Still’s side.