Three takeaways from AS Monaco’s smashing win over Barcelona
AS Monaco secured an outstanding 0-3 victory against Barcelona to clinch the prestigious Joan Gamper Trophy.
In what was a hugely exciting encounter, three second half goals from Lamine Camara, Breel Embolo and new signing Christian Mawissa propelled the away side to a famous triumph.
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With this in mind, this gives us the opportunity to focus on three takeaways from this entertaining clash.
Barca’s high line exploited
With Hansi Flick implementing his high line, it was notable how often Monaco exploited the oceans of space left in behind the Barcelona backline.
Boasting an athletic frontline consisting of Breel Embolo, Folarin Balogun, Takumi Minamino and Eliesse Ben Seghir, that can all hurt opponents with their speed and smartly timed and directed surges into depth, this proved a fruitful avenue for ASM to explore.
Doing a fine job of pinning and drawing markers, in order to create gaps for teammates to attack, there were many instances where Les Monegasques manipulated and then exposed their opponents.
Especially dangerous when Barca’s press was broken and if a Monaco player in possession had time and space to assess their options and execute, Adi Hutter would have been pleased with this aspect that successfully generated a host of openings.
Pressing highs and lows
Although there were occasions where Barcelona cut through the Monaco press, there were also many cases where it worked brilliantly.
While Camara’s masterful harrying that saw him expertly nip in to reclaim the ball before finishing expertly to open the scoring was the finest example, this wasn’t the only instance.
“It’s a situation that we work on a lot in training. We try to win the ball back high up and score straight away. The way Lamine Camara scored that goal was really fantastic,” Hutter explained on their first goal.
Wanting to compress the pitch to minimise the available room to play in, push up collectively in unison with their high line and angle their pressing to use the touchline as an extra defender, ASM did a solid job of making life difficult for Barca when passing out from the back.
As a result, their opponents were often forced into launching low percentage long balls upfield or committing errors that handed Monaco the ball back in dangerous areas. Acting as a very handy chance creator and placing doubt in the minds of their adversaries in build-up, watch for this to be a real weapon for the Principality club this term.
Embolo and Balogun up top
Hutter’s decision to deploy both Embolo and Balogun up top worked nicely for his team even though there was still room for refinement, for they ensured the Barca rearguard were under constant duress dealing with the duo.
Physical, athletic and technical, the strike pairing were a real thorn in the side of their foes, as their ability to maraud in behind, drop deep to link play, get free inside the box and occupy markers saw them wreak havoc.
Offering their team with ideal outlets to stretch the play, connect passages in midfield when checking towards the ball or if going long was the best course of action, their presence was vital towards getting their team up the pitch.
So strong and aerial capable, this meant ASM could send long balls to them, knowing they’d serve as fine targets to compete manfully to help their team win second balls high up.
Moreover, how they shrewdly rotated with their fellow forwards and pinned opponents to manufacture room for colleagues either side of the Barca defence, just like prior to Embolo’s goal, elevated their impact.
Embolo’s wonderfully taken chipped goal was a fine reward for all their quality work on a night where they gave their team fantastic focal and reference points going forward, which will certainly bode well for Les Rouge et Blanc heading into their Ligue 1 opener vs AS Saint-Etienne.
