Shabani Nonda, former Monaco striker
More than twenty years later, the loss of the title is still hard to swallow for Monaco. The Monegasques’ centre-forward at the time, Shabani Nonda, assures us that the Principality club was better than OL at the beginning of the millennium.
It is often said that with time, disappointment fades. It seems that this is not the case at Monaco or at least among some former ASM players. The battle between the Principality club and theOL logically brings back memories of the early 2000s and Lyon’s rise to power. Crowned French champion for the first time in its history in 2002, OL then went on to win six consecutive titles to become a benchmark in the field. However, the series could have ended abruptly the following season of the first title.
After beating Lens at the last minute the previous season, the Rhone team won the title with a one-point lead over theAS Monaco. A scenario that still doesn’t work for Shabani Noda. “In our heads, we were also a bit like champions. It was hard to accept… Especially since we had won the two direct confrontations against Lyon, recalled the Congolese striker on the Ligue 1 website. But the defeat at Guingamp hurt us… It happened three days after the Coupe de la Ligue final won against Sochaux (4-1). We didn’t really celebrate it, but we couldn’t help but savour it.”
Many bad memories for Monaco
Champion with finally one point ahead of MonacoL’OL had become the bête noire of the Monegasques in the 2000s. Between the 2001 League Cup and the 2003 and 2004 titles, the Principality club had failed more than once. More than twenty years later, the pill has still not sunk in for Nonda, who “considers that AS Monaco was better than OL. That we had a better group.” As the saying goes, it’s not always the best who win in the end…
