Ligue 1: AS Monaco suffer frustrating loss to Montpellier
AS Monaco’s disappointing run of results continued, as they suffered a frustrating defeat against Montpellier at the Stade de la Mosson under the eyes of President Dmitry Rybolovlev.
The Match
Making five changes to the starting line-up from their Coupe de France loss vs. Reims for this key clash, Adi Hutter brought in Radoslaw Majecki, Thilo Kehrer, Jordan Teze, Maghnes Akliouche and Mika Biereth in an attempt to reverse their fortunes.
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Eliesse Ben Seghir’s early blast almost propelled ASM into the lead, but former Monaco keeper Benjamin Lecomte was on hand to deny the youngster.
Two further efforts followed from the Moroccan international while Mohammed Salisu also had an opening following a set-piece, as Les Monegasques made a strong start to proceedings against Ligue 1’s bottom side.
Dangerous Montpellier attacker Musa Al-Taamari then launched the home team’s first shot, which was narrowly off target.
Thilo Kehrer made no mistake to power Monaco into the lead not long after, with him finding the back of the net with a superb header to register his fourth goal of the campaign.
Each team enjoyed an opportunity to close out the first half, as Wahbi Khazri and Akliouche both fired wide to see Monaco head to the interval in front.
The relegation-threatened Montpellier didn’t waste much time in drawing level, for the home team took full advantage of Kassoum Ouattara’s wayward pass, which Al-Taamari intercepted before scoring. This came as a real blow to ASM, who were dominant and in control prior to this misstep.
Determined to finish strongly in their search for victory, the introduction of Vanderson, Caio Henrique and Lucas Michal gave Monaco some fresh legs for the final half hour.
Another exceptional Lamine Camara corner almost served as the catalyst for Monaco to retake the lead, but Lecomte smartly denied Soungoutou Magassa’s header.
Disaster then struck in the 82nd minute when Montpellier sprung upfield on the counter to snatch a late winner through Al-Taamari.
Despite their best efforts to salvage a point, it just wasn’t to be for Les Rouge et Blanc in this encounter. All eyes will now be on rapidly recalibrating their focus ahead of their Champions League fixture with Aston Villa on Tuesday, for this latest setback has raised more questions about the team’s ability to maintain its ambitions this term.
In an evening that sadly echoed the previous match in the Coupe de France, where the Principality learned of the sudden death of Henry Rey, a few hours before the match, today, it was the Minister of State Didier Guillaume who abruptly left us. And to pay tribute to him, the Red and Whites all wore black armbands. The club from the Rock also wrote on its networks: “AS Monaco sends its most sincere condolences to his family and loved ones.”
Hutter’s Debrief
“The first half was good. In the second half, individual errors put us in difficulty and then Montpellier were too comfortable. Today, it’s more than a big disappointment, it’s a blow to the head for us and everyone at the club. I respect all the opponents, congratulations to them for their victory,” reflected the Austrian manager.
“It’s a defeat that hurts because we want to get out of this situation. In the first half, the team did good things and we created several opportunities. In the second, we made big individual mistakes. It’s not the first time that’s happened this season. It’s sometimes difficult for a coach to explain that.
“We tried to come back after with several situations in the last minutes, but it was too late. I have a lot of respect for Montpellier, but we needed to impose ourselves to regain confidence. Tuesday will be a totally different match, it’s the Champions League at home, but I don’t think the team already had Aston Villa in mind.”
Key Stats
By the numbers, the fact ASM held the ascendancy in terms of total shots (26 to 12), shots on target (11 to 4), shots inside the box (17 to 8), touches inside the box (41 to 20), corners (16 to 4) and passes in the opposition half (270 to 73) underlined why Monaco were so dissatisfied with the outcome.
Champions League Up Next
Still without a win in 2025 and having only won two of their last 11 matches, this ambitious Monaco will be eager to quickly forget this one and switch their attention to their massive upcoming UCL clash with Aston Villa.