“I will be present with my father and my son at the Emirates”

A few hours before the match at Arsenal (9 p.m.), time for our “MyMemory” series, which allows a fan to recount a memorable memory. Today, meeting with Jérôme who was present at Louis-II against the Gunners in 2015 and will be at the Emirates this Wednesday.

It is a passion that is passed down from generation to generation. Jérôme, now 46 years old, fell in love with AS Monaco at the end of the 1980s, thanks to his father, also a fan of the Club. Before seeing, in turn, his son become a Monegasque supporter. Present all three at the Emirates Stadium for the match against Arsenal, this Bordeaux resident tells us his memories of qualifying for the quarter-final against the Gunners in 2015, which he had the chance to experience from the Stade Louis- II. Interview. ????️

Hello Jerome. How did you become a supporter of AS Monaco?

My father passed on his passion to me, which had been passed on to him by my grandfather. He brought me to the Stade Louis-II very early on because he lived in Monaco. My first memories go back to 1988-1989 when we fought against Marseille every season. I think that for my first time at the stadium, we lost against OM with a goal from Francescoli and a double from Vercruysse in 1989.

And since then, this passion has continued over time.

That's exactly it, I continued to go to the stadium every year and follow them to Paris, Lyon or Bordeaux, where I lived. In 2004, I was at Chelsea and unfortunately in Gelsenkirchen for the Champions League final. In 2015, I was at the Stade Louis-II for this famous match against Arsenal, then against Juve in the match after.

In 2017, I also had the chance to see Manchester City and then Juventus. And this evening, I will be at Arsenal with my father who is 80 years old and my 11 year old son, whose dream was to see an AS Monaco match. We can say that there are worse first matches.

So how will the trip go?

We're going our own way, we took the plane at 5 a.m. and we're taking off again at six o'clock tomorrow. It's going to be quick but it's going to be great to spend some time with the family watching an AS Monaco match. As my father is 80 years old, it would have been difficult to go with the Ultras. He went to the old Louis-II, so he knows AS Monaco very well but I spare him a little.

What's good this evening is that we're going with three generations. This is the first time the three of us have had the chance to do this. My son was piqued by this passion and adopted the Principality club as his team, so we continue the tradition. It will make lasting memories for my son.

Coming back to the 2015 match against Arsenal, what memories do you have?

I had seen the match from a distance with a friend who was an Arsenal fan. This victory came a bit out of nowhere because we were extreme outsiders. In the second leg, after the first leg, we said to ourselves that we were going to win fairly easily. Finally, we quickly conceded the first goal and then, when they scored the second goal, it was absolute stress in the last 5-10 minutes. The final whistle was a real liberation but we felt invincible in my opinion.

Is there an action that you particularly remember?

I remember Suba's save on his line where the Gunners did everything to say that the ball had crossed the line, they had hit the post too. We experienced a lot of scares but we survived and honestly, I wondered if we weren't going to make it to the end. Unfortunately, we came across a cheating and very experienced Juventus team. There was a great generation, so it was a very good memory, like others.

Which stand were you in for this match?

I was sideways opposite the presidential elections. The stadium was full of AS Monaco fans, the ticketing had been done well because there weren't many English people. We made the most of it, it was fire. The stadium was a little silent for the last ten minutes before the explosion of joy because we qualified thanks to the away goal rule which still existed at the time. It was a huge stress until the release at the end.

Was this the match where you were the most stressed in a stadium?

No, the match where I was the most stressed at the stadium was against Manchester City. We had a huge match on the first leg, we had a huge and impressive team. I told myself it would have been a huge waste if we didn't pass. And there, there is the famous header from Tiémoué Bakayoko which arrives in the 77th minute. But Arsenal was the second match where I was the most stressed. It's always against English clubs because they open up the game more (smile).

Did you go alone for this match against the Gunners?

No, I was already with my father. We became father-son in 2015 because my son was only four years old at the time. And so, we're doing grandfather-father-son this evening since he's older now. It's the perfect opportunity, so it's great. We then hope to return to Louis-II for the end of the group matches and why not take advantage of the knockout matches.

From this 2014-2015 generation, who were your favorite players?

Yannick Carrasco had something special, just like Dimitar Berbatov. I really liked Danijel Subasic. Even though he wasn't the greatest goalie, he was someone who unified the team. There was a warrior spirit which is a bit like today's team, I think. We don't have the biggest stars but we have players who fight for each other. So that takes me to 2015.

What is the best match you have ever seen?

It was the half at Chelsea when we made it two-all. It wasn't a victory but we were huge. Everyone thought we were going to get eliminated. I remember that Jérôme Rothen addressed the stands at half-time, it was fire. Hugo Ibarra's goal just before the break and Fernando Morientes' goal which came out of nowhere, it was magnificent and crazy.

So we can say that you have a little lucky side against English clubs.

Indeed, we can say that. I was already in front of my television to see David Trezeguet's famous volley against Manchester United in 1998. I was therefore at the stadium for the semi-final return to Chelsea in 2004 and against Arsenal in 2015. At the time, I told myself that we were never going to lose against an English club, and that was confirmed again against City in 2017, where I was present. I hope this statistic will be confirmed this evening even if it is not a knockout match.

Finally, a little prediction for tonight's match?

I think we will concede goals but we will be able to score because it is Arsenal. I would say 3-2 for AS Monaco, I see a big match. It's an English club, we know how to score goals, so it will be a bit of a crazy match and we will try to create a good atmosphere in the park.