Ten-man AS Monaco fall to Olympique Lyonnais

They battled against adversity throughout the match. Although they managed to equalize just before halftime, AS Monaco's players were ultimately outplayed by Olympique Lyonnais at the Stade Louis-II as part of the 17th matchday of Ligue 1 McDonald's (1-3), after seeing their second goal disallowed and finishing the match with ten men.Recap. ✍️

The Rouge et Blancapproached this first match of the year with the desire to get back on track in the league, after two difficult months. To do so, they will need to replicate their performance from last May against this same OL at the Stade Louis-II (2-0), a result which sealed a place in the Champions League. It wouldn't be easy against a competitor for the European places, 5th in the top flight and four points ahead in the table at kickoff.

To try and put on a good show despite some notable absences (Zakaria's suspension), Camara and Diatta at AFCON as well several injured players) Sébastien Pocognoli decided to reinstate the same 4-4-2 diamond formation he used in beating Auxerre in the Coupe de France. Of note were the additions of Mamadou Coulibaly and Jordan Teze in midfield, while Christian Mawissa started again on the right side of the defense.

Following the tribute paid to Serge Roy, the match got off to a strong start with a powerful intervention made by Lukáš Hradecký (1'). But just after Aleksandr Golovin's response with a beautiful curling shot (5') a blow was struck with the Finnish goalkeeper being forced off injured (12' He was replaced by Philipp Köhn, who was quickly called into action by keeping out an indirect free kick (13').

The pace of the match was then disrupted by numerous fouls, but the Swiss goalkeeper's vigilance was crucial in preventing Moreira from opening the scoring (29' Unfortunately, theRouge et Blancwere then forced to see Christian Mawissa leave the field as well (32') This second setback preceded Lyon's opening goal, scored by Sulc with a touch of luck from a corner kick (0-1, 38')

The situation remained the same even though our luck eventually turned with an equalizer by Mamadou Coulibaly following a mix-up in the Lyon defense (1-1, 45+1)! It was a second assist as well for Folarin Balogun, who was very lively. The half-time whistle is therefore blown with the score tied, after 8 minutes of added time. After a hectic first half, the second half is just as eventful.

Because, following on from a volley from Balogun that was deflected for a corner (51') Thilo Kehrer thought he'd handed Monaco the lead with a header from a corner kick (52') However, the referee, Mr. Brisard, disallowed the goal for a seemingly minor foul. This decision proved costly, as Lyon then took the lead thanks to a fortunate brace from Sulc (1-2, 57')

Philipp Köhn even prevented Tolisso from extending the lead with a powerful shot (66') Then AS Monaco suffered another setback when Coulibaly was shown a straight red card for a dangerous tackle (70') Reduced to ten men once again this season, theRouge et Blancconceded another goal to Abner, who was found unmarked at the back post (1-3, 79')

The substitutions made no difference, and after a final save by Köhn (88' Monaco succumbed to defeat in their first match of the year. They will need to bounce back quickly in the round of 32 of the Coupe de France next weekend against Orléans.

5' Balogun lays the ball off for Golovin, who curls a shot with his right foot, saved by Greif
13' Morton's free-kick is caught by Köhn
29' Moreira's shot in the penalty area is saved by Köhn38' Tolisso's corner is headed in by Sulc at the far post (0-1)
42' Maitland-Niles' shot with the outside of his foot is caught by Köhn45+1' Coulibaly equalizes following a scramble in the Lyon penalty area (1-1)
51' Balogun's volley is deflected by Kluivert for a corner
52' Kehrer scores with a header from Caio's corner, but the goal is disallowed for a foul57' Sulc's quick shot finds the back of the net (1-2)
66' Tolisso's powerful shot is blocked by a diving Köhn
75' Morton's weak attempt is easily caught by Köhn79' Abner scores after being set up by Tagliafico (1-3)
88' Karabec's powerful shot is stopped by Köhn