Aurélien Tchouameni: "A pleasure to win in front of stands full of children"
Job done! The Rouge et Blanc won their last match of the year against a direct competitor for Europe. It was their first win against a member of the top 5 of Ligue 1 this season, as pointed out by Vice President General Manager Oleg Petrov. By winning one of the biggest matches of the 19th round against Rennes (2-1), which had started poorly, with the Bretons opening the scoring, the players of AS Monaco struck a real blow for their ambitions before the winter break. Following this very high level performance Aurélien Tchouameni spoke with the media following the match.
Good evening Aurélien. It was important to end the year well tonight …
Yes of course. We had lost our last league game against Paris Saint-Germain, so we wanted to bounce back quickly. It’s happened tonight, with a great victory against Rennes. We are happy, and that will allow us to go on holiday with a smile.
Especially since you were able to react well after a difficult start to the game …
We were surprised in the first fifteen minutes by the intensity they showed. But as the game went on, we got better and better, and I think the end result is logical and deserved.
This was in very large part due to the attacking duo of Ben Yedder – Volland in front!
Yes it is true that they are two very important players for us. And obviously when the forwards score and are decisive, it allows us to get victories like we’ve done this evening. We are very happy with their performance in recent weeks, and we hope that will be the case again in 2022.
72' ¡KEVIN VOOOOOLLAAAND! 🇩🇪⚽
2-1 #ASMSRFC pic.twitter.com/EZUAaW9cIE
— AS Monaco EN (@AS_Monaco_EN) December 22, 2021
How do you judge this first part of AS Monaco’s season?
I would say our record is pretty good. We would have liked to have done better, but there are still some good things to note. We finished in first place in our group in the Europa League, and tonight we are back to being four points off second place, having made a small jump in the standings. So there are some great things to look for in the second half of the season. We want to play in Europe again next year, so the podium is our number one goal. But first we have to focus on each game, and see where we stand in April and what is in play in the final sprint.
On a personal level, what is your assessment of your year, especially with your inclusion in the French team?
It’s a great year for me that ends with this victory tonight. It’s up to me to continue working to make 2022 an even better year. There were good moments with the club as with the national team. It’s up to me to continue to work to improve, to perform well with AS Monaco and why not, play in the World Cup with Les Bleus.
Tonight, you received the award for best player of the first half of the season, as awarded by the supporters. What’s your reaction?
Above all, great pride. We play to be efficient, and I am happy that our supporters were able to recognize the work I have done in this first part of the season. For myself, like the team, there are obviously things to improve upon, but it’s always good to win trophies, even if it’s an individual award.
Especially since there were a lot of young people to cheer you on tonight against Rennes …
As I said after the Metz game, it’s nice to see these stands full of children coming to support the team. It was again the case tonight. I think we put on a show for them, so everyone is happy when all is said and done. All these young people will grow up and I hope they will continue to follow us in the years to come.
𝗦𝗲𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗶𝗻 2⃣0⃣2⃣2⃣, #𝗔𝗦𝗠𝗙𝗮𝗻𝘀!
A special thank you to the 1,500 children present this evening to support our Rouge & Blancs. ❤️🤍
2-1 | #ASMSRFC pic.twitter.com/vU0QmIMuSf
— AS Monaco EN (@AS_Monaco_EN) December 22, 2021
