AS Monaco won against Lorient 1-0 on Wednesday night at the Stade Louis II. It was their first home win this season, and also qualified them for the quarterfinals of the Coupe de la Ligue. A victory synonymous with qualification for the quarterfinals of the Coupe de la Ligue.
In another context or rather another season, this ASM victory over Lorient would seem trivial, even a sure thing. This season, however, it comes as a real triumph for Thierry Henry’s men, who have struggled greatly across all competitions so far in the 2018-19 campaign. AS Monaco have finally claimed their first victory at the Stade Louis-II, and have earned a sigh of relief after eight losses and three draws at home. A welcome achievement for the team who can proudly move into the quarterfinals of the Coupe de la Ligue.
The match was unorthodox, to say the least. Suspended after fifteen minutes due to heavy rain, the match would restart only 36 minutes later. Monaco created good opportunities from the start, looking often to the Belgian duo of Chadli-Tielemans (21′). Ten minutes later, Romain Faivre put himself in a dangerous position inside FC Lorient’s penalty box. His two efforts, one blocked and the other pulled across the goal were positive for Monaco, but did not affect the 0-0 scoreline going into halftime.
Despite a more balanced match at the beginning of the second half, AS Monaco opened the scoring thanks to Giulan Biancone’s strike from service by Romain Faivre (70 ‘). Geubbels came close to doubling the lead seven minutes later, but his shot was stopped by Lorient’s keeper. Clearly unlucky on the night, he hit the post ten minutes later. The score would not change until the final whistle giving Monaco their the first home win of the season. Thierry Henry’s strategy of employing youth players finally paid off.
Next fixture: Ligue 1, Saturday, 9 pm at the Stade Louis-II against Guingamp (last game of the year).