Opposed to Dinamo Zagreb this Wednesday, for the 2e day of the league phase of the Champions League, AS Monaco has the opportunity to capitalize on its nice success acquired two weeks earlier against FC Barcelona.
For statisticians, nine points would be enough in the vast majority of cases to reach the Champions League play-offs, that is to say finishing between 9e and the 24e place of the league phase, which currently occupies European clubs. By aiming for this stage, AS Monaco has therefore come a third of the way to its objective thanks to its home victory against Barça two weeks ago. By winning one of the matches announced as among the most difficult of its European campaign, ASM already places itself in an ideal situation. With Dinamo Zagreb, Red Star Belgrade and Bologna as their next opponents, they have the opportunity to score big points and reach these famous nine points which could ensure them to extend their adventure in the Champions League.
But to do this, you will have to avoid wasting things and not neglecting anything. This does not seem to be the case for these Monegasques, who continue to win in Ligue 1 and who remain undefeated this season. Last Saturday, they won a tough match against Montpellier (2-1) after clearly dominating. This team, only held in check by Lens this season, seems to show that extra soul which allows them to surpass themselves to overcome inextricable situations, to the point that it is hard to imagine them being surprised by any way through Zagreb. But be careful that the defeat does not come from where you least expect it, because the Croatian team is trying to get out of a bad situation, humiliated by Bayern (2-9), and will be revengeful.
A fortnight ago, before meeting Barcelona, we had to deplore the lack of efficiency of the Red and White and the mute attackers, not always precise in front of goal and having difficulty killing encounters despite countless opportunities. The first observation remains relevant, less so the second. George Ilenikhena scored against Barça, as he did last year in the Antwerp jersey, and he seems to have kicked the anthill. Since then, it is Folarin Balogun who has relaunched with two goals in the last two matches. There remains Breel Embolo, double passer against Montpellier, but still silent, which is enough to frustrate him.
On the sidelines of the centenary celebrations last weekend, former AS Monaco coach Leonardo Jardim explained that if he were on the ASM bench, he would try to minimize the victory won against Barça: “ I would say : “Oh, we won against Barcelona but there were 10 of them.” Did he share his tip with Adi Hütter? Possible, since the content of the Austrian’s response was approximately the same: “ We can’t compare this match to Barcelona because after ten minutes we were in numerical superiority. » It is therefore not excess confidence that threatens the Monegasques, a priori. Nevertheless, there is a golden opportunity to project ourselves a little further forward in C1. And dreaming is never a luxury.
