And that brings the March international break to a close! Now, it’s time for the return of Ligue 1 McDonald’s and the crucial home clash against Olympique de Marseille this Sunday evening at 8:45 PM at the Stade Louis-II. But before we dive into the details of this upcoming showdown, let’s take a look back at the international performances—some of them decisive—delivered by the players from the Principality club. Here’s the recap! 🔙
Akliouche impresses ahead of the World Cup 🏆
Selected by Didier Deschamps for the final set of matches ahead of the 2026 World Cup, Maghnes Akliouche has every reason to hope he will make the French national squad bound for the Americas! Indeed, the Monaco winger distinguished himself during the second match by delivering a superb assist to Marcus Thuram against Colombia (3–1)—and was, moreover, instrumental in setting up the other two French goals.
Having come on for just a few minutes against Brazil (2–1) three days earlier, the striker—a product of La Diagonale -- delivered a very strong performance in his start against James Rodríguez and his teammates.
Golovin, Adingra and Camara score in friendlies 🎯
Aleksandr Golovin, Simon Adingra, and Lamine Camara also proved decisive for their respective national teams in friendly matches. Coming on at the hour mark, the Russian midfielder needed just fifteen minutes to find the net with a header, following a scramble inside the Nicaraguan penalty area (3–1).
For his part, the young Ivorian winger capitalized on his team's resounding 4–0 victory over South Korea to score a signature goal—executing a sharp cutback to shift onto his right foot, followed by a powerful strike into the side netting.
Finally, Lamine Camara took advantage of this international break to turn goalscorer. Having come on at halftime against Gambia, the AS Monaco midfielder waited until stoppage time in the final match of this international window to net a fine poacher's goal, sealing Senegal's 3–1 victory—this coming just four days after he had started against Peru (2–0).
Coulibaly is decisive in his first appearance with Les Espoirs 🇫🇷
Called up to the French U21 national team for the first time in his young career, Mamadou Coulibaly needed no time to adapt! Coming on at halftime during France’s commanding 5–1 victory over Luxembourg—part of the qualifiers for the upcoming U21 European Championship—the Monaco midfielder provided an assist to Rayan Fofana in the very final moments of the match.
Also selected by Gérald Baticle, Christian Mawissa had the opportunity to pick up some playing time, as both of our Rouge et Blanc even earned a spot in the starting lineup for the second match of this international break—a 2–1 victory over Iceland.
Minutes for everyone 💪
This international break also gave several other players from the Club the opportunity to represent their countries—notably Denis Zakaria (who came on as a substitute against Germany and started against Norway), Lukáš Hradecký (who started and captained the side against Cape Verde), Krépin Diatta (who started against Peru and Gambia), Folarin Balogun (who started against Belgium and came off the bench against Portugal), and Stanis Idumbo (who came on as a substitute against Austria U21 and started against the Netherlands U21).
The Academy's youngsters impress as well! 👶
More than a dozen players from La Diagonale also joined their respective national teams across various age categories, and some of them truly shone. This was notably the case for forward Rodon Piazenko (Lithuania U18), who scored against Azerbaijan U18 (4–0); for Safouane Benzahra (Morocco U18), who also found the back of the net against the United States U18 (2–1); and for Ekene Chukwuani (Denmark U17), who managed to score in two different matches—against the Czech Republic U17 and Austria U17—thereby helping his national team qualify for the upcoming U17 European Championship. Well done guys! 👏
