Yahoo Sports PLAYER RATINGS | Monaco 2-0 Toulouse: Monégasques close the gap to PSG
Ligue 1 McDonald’s, Round 14, 07/12/24
Following back-to-back defeats, AS Monaco returned to winning ways against Toulouse FC (2-0) to keep up the pressure on Paris Saint-Germain, who dropped points earlier this weekend.
The Match
Without Folarin Balogun, who suffered a reoccurrence of his shoulder injury this week, Monaco were wasteful in the first half. Against a low-block, Les Monégasques nonetheless managed to open up the Toulouse defence regularly but failed to convert. George Ilenikhena hit the post early on, beating Guillaume Restes with a chip that almost gave Monaco an early lead. He would go on to hit the bar and then shoot just wide before the break, whilst Maghnes Akliouche also went close having burst into the box. The France youth international was guilty of waiting too long before releasing his effort, allowing defenders to recover and make the all-important block.
The deadlock was broken by Wilfried Singo early in the second half as he latched onto Lamine Camara’s pin-point free-kick to the back post. Toulouse didn’t overly commit in search of the equaliser but did assert a period of pressure midway through the half without overly testing Radoslaw Majecki in the Monaco goal.
Without forcing the issue, Monaco settled the encounter late-on with substitute Breel Embolo latching onto a deflected Akliouche ball and heading over the advancing Restes.
The result sees Les Monégasques close the gap to PSG to five points, and after back-to-back defeats, it is a timely return to form ahead of Wednesday’s UEFA Champions League encounter against Arsenal.
Monaco player ratings
Radoslaw Majecki – 5
Caio Henrique – 7
Thilo Kehrer – 5
Wilfried Singo – 7
Vanderson – 6
Lamine Camara – 7
A tidy and combative performance topped by a sublime assist. His excellent dead-ball delivery is perhaps an under-rated asset of his but it has become a crucial arm in this Monaco attack.
Eliot Matazo – 4
Thurst into the starting line-up just minutes before kick-off, it wasn’t an easy situation for the academy product, who hasn’t featured much this season. It was a far-from-perfect performance from the midfielder, who didn’t offer enough options in possession and was too limited in his usage of the ball but he was combative out of possession and ensured that he wasn’t bypassed. In the context, it was a satisfactory performance.
Aleksandr Golovin – 7
Takumi Minamino – 5
Maghnes Akliouche – 4
George Ilenikhena – 3
With Breel Embolo inefficient in recent weeks, Ilenikhena was brought in to score the goals. He didn’t do that. He missed three big chances in the first half, showing a lack of composure and accuracy, before being subbed just after the hour-mark.
Selected Toulouse player ratings
Charlie Cresswell – 6
A strong performance from the Englishman who contained Ilenikhena in the first half and made a crucial last-ditch tackle to deny Akliouche. He was. however, out-muscled by Embolo for Monaco’s second late on.
Joshua King – 4
