Let by a record-setting Ben Yedder, AS Monaco dominate Clermont and eye the Champions League!

One more step towards the Champions League! Efficient at both ends, the Rouge et Blanc recorded a third win in a row at the Stade Louis-II against Clermont (4-1), the 700th at home in the Club’s history, under the eyes of the President Dmitry Rybolovlev. They earned three points which brings them considerably closer to a place in the Champions League. ✍️

The context 📅

It is driven solely by the desire to maintain second place in the table that the Rouge et Blanc approached this home match against Clermont. With two wins and as many clean sheets at home against Rennes and Lille (1-0), Adi Hütter’s men wanted to confirm their good form against a team which is coming off a series of four good matches (1 victory, 2 draws, 1 defeat). Objective: to get a little closer to the Champions League!

The eleven 👥

To do this, the Austrian manager opted to again play the same 4-4-2 which has made the team successful in recent weeks. Of note was the return of Wilfried Singo to defense alongside Thilo Kehrer. And above all there was a start for Breel Embolo in the attack, playing as a duo with his captain, for the first time since his return to competition.

The scenario 🎞

Driven by a very well-attended Stade Louis-II, AS Monaco sets the tone from the start in the first quarter of an hour. And despite a goal denied to Jérémie Bela for a ball that had gone out of play (4′), it was our Rouge et Blanc who took the lead. On a ball poorly cleared by the Clermont defense, Takumi Minamino sent a curling ball into the top corner (1-0, 16′)!

Taki drives play

What a moment of inspiration from the Japanese forward, who scored his ninth goal of the season in Ligue 1, and the fourth which opened the scoring. It was not enough, however, to satisfy the Monegasques, who missed doubling the lead thereafter, on a shot on the turn by Wissam Ben Yedder which came off the crossbar of Mory Diaw (20′). The Auvergne goalkeeper was then happy to see Vanderson’s attempt miss the target (26′).

Clermont égalise.

34' | 1⃣-1⃣ #ASMCF63

— AS Monaco 🇲🇨 (@AS_Monaco) May 4, 2024

A goalscoring return for Magic Breel!

The second goal was slow to come, and it was even Clermont who came back into the game thanks to Mohamed Cham, well found by Alan Virginius (1-1, 34′). But the Rouge et Blanc were eager to get stuck in, and reacted quickly through Breel Embolo,who perfectly scored on a through ball from his captain (2-1, 37′)! It was a winning return for the Swiss striker, who scored his first goal since…February 5 2023, against Clermont.

A lively first quarter of an hour

Adi Hütter’s men therefore returned to the locker room with a one-goal advantage, despite two final opportunities for Minamino from afar (45+2′) and Kehrer with a header (45+2′). On their return, they offered more of the same, with a powerful shot from Wilfried Singo (47′). Logically, the Auvergnois tried to react, first on a shot from Bela which skimmed off the crossbar (56′), and then on a free kick (59′). But their efficiency was not there, unlike Wissam Ben Yedder.

Wissam (record) Ben Yedder at your service!

On the lookout for a loss of the ball by Clermont in the area, the Monegasque number 10 did not hesitate to score his 116th goal in La Diagonale, to become second-top scorer in the history of the Club (3-1, 57′)! It was another milestone for him, as he scored his 14th goal of the season in the top flight, and the 15th for the Rouge et Blanc in the first quarter of an hour of the second half, notes Opta.

Avec 1⃣ 1⃣ 6⃣ buts inscrits sous les couleurs de l'AS Monaco, @WissBenYedder devient, seul, le deuxième meilleur buteur de l'histoire du Club 😍🥈#ASMCF63 pic.twitter.com/LEpfMjhEpO

— AS Monaco 🇲🇨 (@AS_Monaco) May 4, 2024

Wiss’ sees double as Europe gets closer…

Changes then punctuated the hour of play, but few chances came to pass. That was until Captain’ Wiss’ magnificent deep ball for Folarin Balogun, who came up short against Diaw (74′). Wissam Ben Yedder then found the net, but his double was refused for offside (75′). It was only a postponement, since after a big opportunity for Balo’ (87′), the French striker finished perfectly on a fine pass from Taki (4-1, 88′)! AS Monaco are definitely taking off!

Because Clermont will not come back again, even with a potential penalty, on which the VAR would finally change its mind (93′). It was game over, and the Rouge et Blanc had won comfortably at the Stade Louis-II for the third time in a row (4-1), and thus consolidated their hold on second place in the Ligue 1 standings! DAGHE MUNEGU! 🇲🇨

Key moments 🎥

4′: Bela has the ball in the net for Clermont, but it’s refused because the ball had gone out of bounds
16′: Minamino curls the ball into the top corner to open the score (1-0)
20′: A strike on the turn from Ben Yedder which hits the crossbar
26′: A curling shot from Vanderson is narrowly off-target
34′: A cross from Virginius is turned in at close range by Cham (1-1)
37′: Ben Yedder plays a ball through to Embolo in the area who finishes  (2-1)
43′: A pass from Ben Yedder finds Minamino who is denied by Diaw
44′: A free header by Caufriez at a corner, but it’s over the bar
45+1′: A strike from Minamino from outside the area is blocked
45+2′: A header by Kehrer across goal hits the post
45+3′: An attempt from distance by Cham misses the target
47′: A powerful shot from Singo is over the bar
56′: A strong strike from Bela hits the crossbar
57′: Opportunistic in the box, Ben Yedder scores from a shot on the turn (3-1)
59′: A free kick from Bela flies just over the bar
74′: A deep pass from Ben Yedder finds Balogun who stumbles against Diaw
75′: Ben Yedder makes a deep run and scores a magnificent goal which is refused for offside
81′: A run by Nicholson is stopped by Majecki
87′: Balogun is stopped by Mory Diaw from close range
88′: A ball from Minamino finds Ben Yedder who finishes across goal (4-1)

The stat 📊

AS Monaco recorded its 700th victory in Ligue 1 at home, becoming the fourth team to reach this total after Marseille, Bordeaux and St Etienne. The Rouge et Blanc have also taken as many points in their last three home games in Ligue 1 (9 – 3 wins) as in the previous eight (9 – 2 wins, 3 draws, 3 defeats).

📋 Match details:

Saturday May 4 – Stade Louis-II

Ligue 1 – Matchday 32: AS Monaco 4-1 Clermont Foot 63

Halftime: 2-1

Goals: Minamino (16′), Embolo (37′), Ben Yedder (57′ and 88′) for AS Monaco; Cham (34′) for Clermont

Bookings: Akliouche (51′), Vanderson (61′), Minamino (69′) for AS Monaco; Bouchenna (90′) for Clermont

AS Monaco: Majecki – Vanderson (Ouattara, 65′), Singo, Kehrer, Diatta – Akliouche (Caio Henrique, 91′), Fofana, Camara (Magassa, 86′), Minamino (Coulibaly, 90′) – Embolo (Balogun, 65′), Ben Yedder © 

Substitutes: Köhn, C.Henrique, Maripán, Ouattara, Salisu, Coulibaly, Diop, Magassa, Balogun

Manager: Adi Hütter

Clermont: Diaw – Zeffane (Jacquet, 63′), Pelmard, Caufriez (Ogier, 77′), Borges – Magnin, Gastien, Cham – Bela (Fakili, 62′), Kyei (Nicholson, 77′), Virginius (Bouchenna, 78′)

Substitutes: N’Diaye, Ogier, Jacquet, Armougom, Berkani, Fakili, Keïta, Bouchenna, Nicholson

Manager: Pascal Gastien