Day: 27 February 2022

What had seemed a routine AS Monaco victory turned on its head in the final 10 minutes, as Reims came out 2-1 winners in a defeat that harms the Principality side’s European aspirations.

Prince Albert II and AS Monaco Vice-President Oleg Petrov were in attendance on Sunday as the match was unexpectedly delayed by five minutes, Reims coach Oscar Garcia confirming post-match the delay was a symbolic gesture in support of the Ukrainian people – an idea conceived by their president Jean-Pierre Caillot.

For Philippe Clement, however, it was an unexpected gesture. “I was a bit surprised. If you are going to make such a gesture, we should be told in advance. We have a tight preparation for the game, every minute is organised to be ready for the match.” The Belgian coach made it known that he was in agreement with the sentiment. “There is no-one in the club who wants the war.”

Following the delay, there was then a symbolic kick-off in which the Monegasque bobsledding duo of Rudy Rinaldi and Boris Vain, who recently became record-setters in the Beijing Winter Olympics, played a short pass.

The game started in predictable fashion. Reims sat deeply looking to contain Monaco’s attacking threat. That work was seemingly undone early on, when Gelson Martins headed in at the back-post only for a marginal offside call to come to Reims’ rescue.

Monaco continued to impose themselves, but without any incision, as the half drifted by without many notable chances. That all changed early in the second-half as a thunderous drive from Fraser Hornby early in the second-half rattled off the crossbar, Alexander Nubel was well-beaten.

The match opener came from an entirely predictable source, the prolific Wissam Ben Yedder latched onto a Sofiane Diop through-ball and converted in typically efficient fashion. The French striker almost doubled the lead seconds later, but his volley hit the face of the post.

In search of a goal, Reims finally opened up, and whilst the away side created more chances of their own, the biggest chance would fall once again to Monaco. Jean Lucas should have done better, but his uncomposed finish flew comfortably over the bar.

Monaco would rue that miss. Kevin Volland, who is struggling to net for the Principality side, put one in his own net, Nubel helpless to prevent the leveller. Things would yet worsen. Jean Lucas saw red for leaving a foot in on his opponent, which saw the Brazilian receive a second yellow.

Monaco’s miserable day at the office was completed when Nathanael Mbuku slotted past Nubel in the final minute of stoppage time, the disastrous final 10 minutes now leaves Monaco with a mountain to climb in order to attain Champions League football next season.

Clement was understandably down-beat post-match. “I am very disappointed not to have obtained the three points, because that’s the important thing in every match. I’m also disappointed because we weren’t rewarded. The players did lots of good things to create good chances… In the final minutes we made errors, which changed the match.”

The Belgian continued, “We need to be more intelligent, more well-organised in those circumstances.” Monaco must quickly overcome Sunday’s disappointment as they come up against Nantes in the Coupe de France on Wednesday, with a place in the final at stake.

Photo by Luke Entwistle, Monaco Life

Somewhere between the pre-match display of anti-war sentiment and a post-match interview in which Donatas Motiejunas refused to talk about basketball, a fantastic match broke-out with AS Monaco prevailing on the night (92-78).

Having secured victory against Russian side Unics Kazan on Tuesday night, the Salle Gaston Medecin faithful would be treated to another Euroleague triumph on Friday, this time against Turkish side Fenerbahce.

The match, at times, was of secondary importance to the on-court action, the event bookended by poignant moments of solidarity. Pre-match, referees revealed signs reading “Stop the war”, which was greeted with a round of applause from all inside the hall, including from the club’s Russian President Aleksej Fedoriscev, Ukrainian Vice-President Sergey Dyadechko and Prince Albert II.

The match itself was also punctuated by moments that reminded us of the troubling political context, the Roca Team’s Ukrainian assistant coach Sergiy Gladyr holding up a “Stop War” sign to the camera during one timeout.

Sport, with its power to entertain, provided a welcome distraction, and following Tuesday’s on-the-buzzer victory, home fans once again witnessed a Monaco win, which lifted the side into seventh in the Euroleague.

The victory was, however, earned in a starkly different manner, the home-side powering into an early lead, going on to expertly control their points advantage. An inexplicably easy dunk for the Turkish visitors inside the opening 10 seconds of the encounter alluded to a difficult challenge. And although the first-quarter was a tight affair (19-20), the match effectively ended as a contest in the second, an impressive team performance in which everyone contributed, building an unassailable 22-point gap (55-33).

Motiejunas, Mike James, Will Thomas, Paris Lee and Alpha Diallo all chipped in with significant point contributions, whilst participating in a solid defence, which left Fenerbahce unable to get into an offensive flow.

American Diallo was in particularly hot form, his 24-points on the night a career best in the Euroleague, backing-up his 11-points against Unics.

Despite narrowly losing both second-half quarters, the damage had already been done, and whereas Sasa Obradovic’s men have previously generously handed the opposition a route back into the tie, the same was not to happen here (92-78).

Post-match, Motiejunas was in no mood to talk about what had happened on-court. Asked about the importance of the victory in the context of the hunt for the top-8, the Lithuanian replied, “I think we should take a minute’s silence because of what is going on in Europe right now. Lots of innocent people are dying. Please stop the war in Ukraine. Our thoughts and prayers are with that country right now.”

Obradovic did, however, address his side’s successful outing. “We played great basketball, and we’re really happy with this victory. I am happy for the team because they deserved it. Diallo gave an extraordinary performance.”

Monaco next face a difficult trip to Spain where they will face first-placed side Barcelona on Thursday, with the aim of cementing their play-off place.