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Review

Ligue 1: A difficult evening for AS Monaco, but a memorable one for young Ezekiel

By Edward Stratmann
Published on 9 November 2025
6 minutes read
© AS Monaco
By Edward Stratmann
- 9 November 2025
6 minutes read

Despite the Principality club’s heavy home defeat to RC Lens on Saturday evening in Ligue 1, Ezekiel will keep memories from this night forever engraved in his heart. The 13-year-old, who survived a serious accident in 2020, enjoyed an exceptional evening close to his beloved AS Monaco. Monaco Tribune was able to follow him and his father exclusively throughout the experience.

From joy to disappointment – just four days after Monaco’s triumph in Norway came a far less cheerful story as the players of AS Monaco were soundly beaten by the Sang et Or (1-4). Among the 10,000 spectators at the Stade Louis-II, including president Dmitry Rybolovlev, Ezekiel watched his prediction of a 3-1 win for the Red and Whites slip away. Invited alongside his father, Joffrey, the young fan from Avignon relished the privileged access behind the scenes of his favourite club.

Ezekiel and his father on the forecourt of the Louis-II © AS Monaco stadium

“It’s incredible”

Burned on 55% of his body five years ago, the young boy discovered a passion for football during his long stay in the hospital. Throughout his rehabilitation, he used the sport to help regain mobility. His determination even earned him the chance to train with AS Monaco’s U13 team last year. Since the age of nine, he has regularly attended matches at the Stade Louis-II with his father, who spent two months in the region for the Monaco Fair.

Ezekiel salutes Maghnes Akliouche © Stéphane Renaux – Monaco Tribune

When they arrived at the stadium, Ezekiel and his father were greeted with a personalised jersey and a club scarf. Their visit began with a tour of the locker room, where they discovered the players’ shirts – including that of Maghnes Akliouche, the favourite of this 5th-grade student who studies through correspondence. The next stop was the press conference room, where Ezekiel began playfully imitating Kylian Mbappé, repeating the star’s famous line: “You don’t talk to me about age!”

Ezekiel and his father carefully observe the warm-up of the AS Monaco players ©
Ligue 1 : L’AS Monaco face à un sérieux test contre Lens

Balogun – from hero to villain

For the second consecutive home league match, following the game against Paris FC, Sébastien Pocognoli made just one change to his lineup compared to the Champions League fixture: striker Mika Biereth started in place of Takumi Minamino.

The Monegasques wasted no time creating danger. Aleksandr Golovin had the first clear chance, breaking forward from his own half after a superb laser pass from Caio Henrique. But the Russian failed to control the ball properly and lost his one-on-one with goalkeeper Robin Risser in the third minute. From the stands, Ezekiel wondered aloud why the Red and Whites’ winger hadn’t simply chipped the ball to beat the keeper.

Just three minutes later, Golovin turned provider, sliding a pass to Folarin Balogun, who also found himself denied by the Lens shot-stopper.

Ten minutes after his header hit the post, Odsonne Édouard capitalised on an error from captain Thilo Kehrer to open the scoring, despite an initial save by Philipp Köhn (21′). “There are three defenders in the goal!” exclaimed Ezekiel, moments before his joy returned when AS Monaco were awarded a penalty following a foul by Mamadou Sangaré on the American centre-forward. The latter made no mistake, taking matters into his own hands to equalise (37′). “I didn’t have him among the scorers,” said the teenager.

But the visitors quickly struck back courtesy of Wesley Saïd (40′), restoring Lens’s lead. Ezekiel, unfazed, smiled: “I missed my prediction, but my dad’s still in the game!” His father had bet on a 2–2 draw – though that hope faded fast when the northerners extended their advantage via Sangaré (45′+3), just after Monaco’s number 9 was shown a red card for a reckless challenge on the Malian midfielder. “That’s never a red! The referee should at least check VAR,” protested Ezekiel, surprised by Mr. Dechepy’s harsh decision.

Second half recap

As the second half began, Ezekiel and his father, Joffrey, missed the opening minutes, admitting with a laugh that they’d gotten lost in the stadium corridors while trying to find their seats. The evening soon turned sour when Saïd scored his second of the night, heading in at the near post from a corner around the hour mark. Yet the boy wearing his jersey marked with the number 30 – his birth date – remained calm, unconcerned by the growing scoreline.

Despite AS Monaco’s disappointing performance, Ezekiel still found reasons to smile. He applauded the substitution of his idol, Maghnes Akliouche (74′), and even joked, “There are more Lens fans than Monaco ones,” as the chants of the thousand travelling supporters from Pas-de-Calais echoed through the Louis-II.

Late in the match, Monaco were handed a second penalty after a handball by Andrija Bulatović. “Don’t put pressure on yourself,” Ezekiel shouted encouragingly at Ansu Fati, who had come on to take the spot kick. But the number 31, on loan from FC Barcelona, saw his effort saved by Risser (90′+3).

It was a second straight Ligue 1 loss for the Principality side, who now trail their northern opponents by five points – a setback before the international break that could see Denis Zakaria and his returning teammates slip further down the table, where they currently sit sixth.

Ezekiel: “I really had a great evening”

In the mixed zone, Swiss midfielder Zakaria did not hide his frustration. “We didn’t play the game we needed to, and it became even harder once we went down to ten men. We’re really disappointed with this defeat. Unfortunately, we gave away the goals – that’s football, it’s part of the game. We have to be better at that. We lost as a team,” he insisted.

Head coach Pocognoli also expressed his disappointment, while general manager Thiago Scuro pointed to the refereeing decisions. “For me, it’s unacceptable to send off Folarin Balogun. We don’t understand why VAR didn’t intervene in that situation. The red card had a huge influence on the game,” stated the Brazilian.

As for Ezekiel, he summed up the night in his own words. If he had been with the players, he joked, he would have “given them a good talking-to.” But the young fan preferred to focus on the unforgettable memories. “What did I like best? The locker room! That was awesome. But when I shook hands with the players, that was even better. I really had a great evening. I was very happy,” he told us with a smile.

And in the end, that’s what matters most.