It’s up to Monaco to keep up. After the victories of Lille in Metz, of PSG in Strasbourg and before the OL-Angers tonight (to be continued on our site), ASM received Dijon at the Louis II stadium. Of the four in front, it is probably the princely club that trembled the least before tackling this 32nd day of Ligue 1. Best team in the championship over the year 2021, it faced the red lantern on a series of 11 defeats consecutive. On paper, the poster looked unbalanced. Without a sick Kevin Volland, Niko Kovac even allowed himself to run his team as Ben Yedder started once again on the bench, leaving Jovetic in charge of the offensive sector, accompanied by Golovin and Diop.
Despite the predictions and the opposing forms of the two formations, no match is won in advance. Monaco learned it the hard way during this first period. Dominating and offensive, the Asemists still presented a game a little too scholarly to gain the upper hand and especially to worry the opposing defense. Of course, there were situations of strikes as with Golovin (10th) then Jovetic (16th, 27th). Maripan thought to open the scoring on this free kick from Golovin but an offside position denied the goal to the Chilean (24th). It took more to unlock a mastered match without spark or creativity. Worse still, approximations were emerging.
Ben Yedder changed everything
Dijon almost took advantage of it since Baldé stole a ball in the feet of Disasi to go to goal and collide with Lecomte (35th). If Tchouaméni tried his hand at the acrobatic recovery (42nd), Kamara answered him with a shot wound from 25 meters above nothing (44th), as if to remind that the DFCO would play its luck for the second period. To avoid this, Kovac did not wait any longer and made his first changes with the entries of Ben Yedder and Fabregas in place of Diop and Aguilar. The difference was immediately visible. The Spanish midfielder first found Golovin in the box, which collapsed. The referee did not whistle for a penalty only in the continuity of the action, Ecuela-Manga hooked Ben Yedder ten meters from the goal.
Allagbé pushed back the French international’s attempt but saw Jovetic arrive at full speed to propel the leather to the back of the net (1-0, 49th). The beginning of the end for the Burgundians because they could not resist the rise in power of the Monegasques. Suffering, the defense let Caio Henrique escape to lose his duel with Allagbé (58th). Mama Baldé’s opportunity – alone against Lecomte, he hit above (61st) – was only an epiphenomenon. A new defensive error condemned the bad student of the championship. Golovin took advantage of a poor recovery from Lautoa to send Ben Yedder to sign the break (2-0, 63rd). Monaco could have widened the gap earlier with Golovin’s attempt on the bar (70th) and that of Jovetic in the arms of the goalkeeper (71st). It was finally Ben Yedder who went for his double, this time converting his penalty (3-0, 90th) in an end of the game managed without worry. OL have no interest in missing out tonight.
The Ligue 1 ranking can be found here.