Ligue 1 Uber Eats, Round 24, 10/03/24
AS Monaco and Paris Saint-Germain saw out an entertaining draw (0-0) at the Stade Louis II. Goalkeepers were very much on top in a game where much of the attention was diverted towards Kylian Mbappé, withdrawn at half-time.
Monaco didn’t dominate possession but did have the lion’s share of the chances in the first half and would have gone into half-time if not for the impressive Gianluigi Donnarumma. The Italian shot-stopper made crucial saves from Folarin Balogun, Takumi Minamino and Wissam Ben Yedder in the first half as PSG struggled to gain a foothold in the match with Mbappé notably struggling to win his individual battle with the impressive Wilfried Singo.
The France captain was involved in a collision with Guillermo Maripán midway through the half, and whilst he continued until half-time, he had to be withdrawn at the break. Not the return that Mbappé had in mind.
The Monégasque barrage continued into the second half. This time, Donnarumma was beaten but the bar denied Ben Yedder, whose sweetly hit volley went so close to giving Monaco what would have been a thoroughly deserved lead. Luis Enrique was looking for solutions and wrung the changes.
Brought off at half-time, Mbappé lapped up the applause of the PSG fans, took a selfie with a fan & then sat with his mum in the stands.
How will that go down with Luis Enrique, who last week said that PSG would have “to learn to play without Mbappé.”
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After Bradley Barcola replaced the injured Marco Asensio in the first half, Randal Kolo Muani, Nuno Mendes and Ousmane Dembélé also came on, injecting fresh energy. Barcola, as he has been in recent matches, was a livewire and PSG’s greatest threat. He went close to giving Les Parsiens the lead after cutting into the box and getting a shot that hit Radoslaw Majecki’s head before going to safety.
The Polish goalkeeper was then decisive again, saving from Vitinha. Goalkeepers were very much on top and as the final whistle drew near, both teams looked resigned to a draw. Neither side could find the winner. PSG’s grip on the title remains firm. Monaco remain third but could be caught by rivals OGC Nice.
Monaco player ratings
Radoslaw Majecki – 7
Donnarumma stole the show in the first half with a string of fine saves, but it was Majecki who made the difference in the second half, making huge saves from Barcola and then Vitinha. He has certainly justified Adi Hütter’s choice to drop Philipp Köhn.
Thilo Kehrer – 5
Guillermo Maripán – 4
Wilfried Singo – 7
Another outstanding match from the Ivory Coast international, who comprehensively won his battle against Mbappé in the first half. He won an incredible 88% of his duels (15/17) a record against PSG in Ligue 1 since Opta began taking records back in the 2006/07 season.
Kassoum Ouattara – 6
Aleksandr Golovin – 6
Youssouf Fofana – 5
Maghnes Akliouche – 5
Takumi Minamino – 6
Wissam Ben Yedder – 5
Folarin Balogun – 5
PSG player ratings
Gianluigi Donnarumma – 7
Not for the first time this season, the Italian kept PSG in the game in the first half, making crucial saves. He was also quick off his line to cut out numerous dangerous situations in the second half.
Nordi Mukiele – 5
Lucas Hernandez – 5
Lucas Beraldo – 5
Achraf Hakimi – 5
Vitinha – 6
Manuel Ugarte – 5
Carlos Soler – 5
Kylian Mbappé – 4
An underwhelming return to the Stade Louis II in what could be the Frenchman’s final visit to the iconic Monaco stadium. He got the better of Singo in the pair’s first duel but was then muscled out of the game by the Ivory Coast international, forcing Mbappé to seek spaces more centrally. After going down under a tackle from Maripán (27′), he continued until half-time before being substituted. Perhaps hindered by that contact with the Chilean, Mbappé wasn’t influential before being replaced at half-time.
Gonçalo Ramos – 4
Marco Asensio – N/A
Had one of PSG’s rare sights of goal in the first half but was then forced off with an injury in the 38th minute and replaced by Bradley Barcola (6), who had a positive impact on the game. When he moved out to the left, he had a lot more joy against Singo and created the two best chances of the match for PSG with dribbles through the Monaco defence.
GFFN | Luke Entwistle
