AS Monaco lose to clinical Toulouse

They were looking to build on their Derby success against Nice. Unfortunately, AS Monaco lost out to a more dominant and clinical Toulouse side, who scored twice from set-pieces (1-2). Maghnes Akliouche scored at the start of the second half to level proceedings. Match report. ✍️

The Context 📅

Winners in the  Côte d’Azur Derby against OGC Nice last weekend (2-3), The Red and Whites have rediscovered a taste for success. They now want to follow this up against Toulouse this Sunday at the Stade Louis-II, which would allow them to climb to second place in the standings. Favourites to beat a side just outside the relegation zone, they will have to be wary, however, as TFC are coming off a convincing performance at Benfica in the Europa League.

The Eleven 👥

For Matchday 22 of Ligue 1, Adi Hütter opted to stick with the same system that proved so successful in Nice: a 4-3-3 formation. Aleksandr Golovin and Wissam Ben Yedder were suspended for this match, leaving Maghnes Akliouche and Folarin Balogun in place. The defensive line of Kehrer, Maripan, Salisu and Jakobs remained unchanged, as does the trio of Camara, Zakaria and Fofana in midfield.

The Scenario 🎞

Buoyed by their victory at the Allianz Riviera, Monaco got off to a good start and created the first chance of the game. Sent in behind by Takumi Minamino, Folarin Balogun won his duel with the defender and went on to face Guillaume Restes one-on-one. His cross-shot was saved (2′). Monaco had a monopoly on the ball, but the Toulousans, attacking quickly, looked dangerous through Yann Gboho. Philipp Köhn was alert and made a good save (10′).

Coulibaly’s Ligue 1 debut

The match was chaotic, and after a duel with an opposing midfielder, Mohamed Camara fell awkwardly and had to make way for Mamadou Coulibaly, who had already come on against Rodez in the Cup, to make his Ligue 1 debut (25′). TFC came out more and Franck Magri forced the Monaco goalkeeper to come out from 18 yards to prevent the opening goal (36′). Vincent Sierro’s free-kick just before half-time (41′) gave them the lead.

Premier changement pour l'AS Monaco :

🟢 Mamadou Coulibaly, première en Ligue 1
🔴 Mo' Camara 🤕

25' | 0️⃣-0⃣ #ASMTFC pic.twitter.com/gZPTwr2dNz

— AS Monaco 🇲🇨 (@AS_Monaco) February 18, 2024

Akliouche resets the balance

The half-time whistle and the coach’s words did the Red and Whites some good, and they came back with a vengeance after the break and soon equalised. A one-touch pass from Youssouf Fofana allowed Maghnes Akliouche to take advantage of a favourable counter-attack and fire past Restes in with his right foot (48′).

It was Monaco’s 11th goal in the first 15 minutes of the second half this season, a league record. They even came close to going ahead a few moments later through their American striker, but he was thwarted by Kamanzi from six yards (51′). They were invigorated, but had to be vigilant when Magri’s shot was parried by Philipp Köhn (57′).

Caught out again from a set-piece

Then came a bigger scare when Mawissa’s effort hit the right-hand post (60′). The Principality’s players hit back less than ten minutes later when their number 29 came up against defender Mawissa (68′). Unfortunately, they were to succumb almost immediately to Logan Costa’s effort from a corner (70′). Undaunted, Adi Hütter’s men went back on the attack and Eliesse Ben Seghir, who came on just after the second goal, had a shot saved by Restes (72′).

Bouncing back at Lens next Sunday

He then thought he had equalised with a header but was penalised for a legitimate offside position (81′). The end of the match was very choppy, with Toulouse stalling at the slightest touch. It was now the end of added time and Takumi Minamino went on a lone rush. He tried his luck in the box but his shot was blocked for a corner by a defender (90’+5).

The corner kick came to nothing and the referee blew his whistle. Tough luck, AS Monaco lose 2-1 to Toulouse at the Stade Louis-II. Next up on Sunday at Stade Bollaert, they take on RC Lens (1pm CET) in a bid to get back to winning ways.

𝗙𝗶𝗻 𝗱𝘂 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝗰𝗵 🔚

Il faudra repartir de l'avant dimanche prochain sur la pelouse du RC Lens 👊

1⃣-2⃣ #ASMTFC pic.twitter.com/0GClrj395V

— AS Monaco 🇲🇨 (@AS_Monaco) February 18, 2024

Key Moments 🎥

2′ : Balogun’s cross shot stopped by Restes on his right
10′ : Köhn dives well on Gboho’s left-footed shot
36′ : Köhn makes a good save in front of Magri
41′ : Sierro’s direct free-kick (0-1)
48′ : Akliouche equalizes from close range (1-1)
51′ : Balogun is blocked by Kamanzi at the 6 meters
57′ : Köhn saves a shot from Magri at the edge of the box
60′ : Mawissa hits the post with a long-range shot
68′ : Balogun is again blocked, this time by Mawissa
70′ : Second goal for Toulouse via Costa from a corner (1-2)
72′ : Restes removes a shot from Ben Seghir from his top corner
81′ : Ben Seghir’s goal disallowed for an offside position
90+5′ : Minamino’s run on goal concluded with a deflected shot

📋 Match Details :

Sunday 18th February – Stade Louis-II

Ligue 1 Uber Eats– Matchday 22 : AS Monaco 1-2 Toulouse FC 

Halftime : 1-1

Goals: Akliouche (48′) for AS Monaco ; Sierro (41′), Costa (70′) for Toulouse

Bookings : Zakaria (27′) for AS Monaco ; Mawissa (65′), Donnüm (82′), Restes (90+3′) for Toulouse

AS Monaco : Köhn – Kehrer, Maripán, Salisu, Jakobs (Ouattara, 78′) – Fofana, Camara (Coulibaly, 25′), Zakaria © – Minamino, Akliouche – Balogun (Ben Seghir, 71′)

Substitutes: Lienard, Majecki, Ouattara, Platret, Valme, Ben Seghir, Coulibaly, Diop, Michal

Manager: Adi Hütter

Toulouse FC: Restes – Kamanzi (Desler, 56′), Costa, Nicolaisen, Diarra, Mawissa – Casseres, Sierro © – Magri, Dallinga (Donnüm, 76′), Gboho (Babicka, 88′)

Substitutes: Dominguez, Desler, Keben, Cissoko, Gelabert, Schmidt, Spierings, Babicka, Donnüm

Manager: Carles Martinez Novell