AS Monaco suffered a disappointing 2-0 defeat against Olympique de Marseille at home to continue their difficult start to the season.
Currently sitting 14th in the Ligue 1 standings with just four points, which isn’t a true reflection of how they’ve played as they’ve been dominating games, this was another frustrating night at the office for Monaco. “We are not happy tonight. Four points in five games is not what we expected but it is the truth of the moment,” Niko Kovac lamented.
“We have to show the same attitude and the same passion as last season. We have a good team, good players, but the other teams are now facing us more. We have to play in a compact, aggressive way, and that’s how the opportunities will come back.”
In a match where Monaco enjoyed more possession (51% to 49%) and more accurate passes (413 to 384), Marseille were certainly the more threatening team going forward, though, playing with greater dynamism and cohesion. Indeed, the fact OM had more shots (13 to 7), more shots on target (5 to 0), created more chances (14 to 6) and completed more dribbles (16 to 6) underlined their effectiveness.
With Bamba Dieng running riot on his way to bagging a decisive brace, Amine Harit looking menacing and Matteo Guendouzi smartly linking play, the Monaco backline of Axel Disasi, Benoit Badiashile and Chrislain Matsima never truly looked comfortable dealing with their foes.
Although they were second best, encouragement could be found in the way of solid performances from Aurelien Tchouameni, Caio Henrique and Youssouf Fofana, who held their own.
Following this forgettable result, Les Monegasques’ attention will now quickly turn to their opening Europa League group stage match against Sturm Graz, where they’ll be gunning for victory to restore some confidence and positive momentum.