AS Monaco’s ‘League Phase’ in the Champions League ended on a sour note at the San Siro as they were swept aside in a nightmarish 16 minutes by Inter Milan on Wednesday (3-0).

On one of the most iconic stages in world football, the San Siro, it was all over before it ever really began for Monaco. Within the first five minutes, Lautaro Martinez had got his first, blasting home from the penalty spot after Denis Zakaria had brought down Marcus Thuram in the box.

By the 12th minute, it was all over. Struggling to deal with France international Thuram, one of Adi Hütter’s former players at Borussia Mönchengladbach, Christian Mawissa suffered a rush of blood to the head, bringing down the striker with no regard for playing the ball. A red card was the logical consequence.

Early red card ends the contest

By the 16th minute, Monaco were one man down and two goals down. Once again it was Martinez, who latched onto a loose knockdown inside the box. “Our start was a bit of a nightmare,” admitted Hütter post-match. “After the red card, the game was over. Inter made a decisive start and started like a weapon. We were not strong enough,” added the Monaco manager, responding to a question from Monaco Life. 

Hütter’s reaction was to shut up shop. He took off Maghnes Akliouche in just the 19th minute, opting to bring on another defender in the form of Caio Henrique; the objective was clear – avoid humiliation.

After Federico Dimarco was played through in the 22nd minute, the Principality club’s night could have gone from very bad to even worse but he blasted over and the storm relented. Aware that the result – and a place in the top eight in the Champions League – was secured, Inter’s fans were boisterous. Turning their backs with a Poznan celebration, they seemed more interested in the demise of city rivals AC Milan, whose travails against Dinamo Zagreb sporadically popped up on the big screen to rapturous celebrations.

An exercise in damage limitation for AS Monaco

As a precautionary measure, Thilo Kehrer and Lamine Camara, both of whom would have been suspended had they received a yellow card, were taken off at the break. Once again, Hütter’s priorities were clear and the night had become a case of damage limitation.

And whilst Inter Milan only scored one more goal, with Martinez completing his hat-trick with a close-range finish, there was another cruel twist in the tale as far as AS Monaco were concerned.

Teze suffers serious injury

From a rather innocuous challenge, Jordan Teze went down and had to be stretchered off. Having already made all of their substitutes, it meant that Les Monégasques ended the encounter with nine men. Hütter said post-match that he feared that Teze had suffered a severe quadriceps injury, however, any definitive conclusions will have to wait until after he has undergone his MRI.

Marko Arnautovic had the chance to add a late fourth but it ended 3-0. “Some players were a bit nervous to play in this stadium, on this stage. It was the first time for some,” said Hütter, who pointed to Internazionale’s experience and credentials to perhaps even go all the way in this season’s Champions League.

PSG or Benfica up next

For Monaco, however, it was perhaps a night that showcased their limitations. They will have to go through the play-off rounds after the humbling defeat at the San Siro. There, they will come up against a familiar face – either PSG or Benfica.

For Breel Embolo, the preference is clear. “It would find it a bit of a shame (if we were to face PSG). We want our revenge against Benfica,” said the Monaco forward, referencing the defeat to the Portuguese side in a match dominated by controversial refereeing decisions, at the Stade Louis II back in November.

“But if it’s Paris, it’s Paris. We’ll accept it. We worked all of last year to have matches like this,” he added. Monaco will find out their opponent for the next round on Friday and whilst it remains unclear which side they will draw, one thing is certain – they will have to improve on Wednesday’s performance if they are to go any further in this year’s Champions League.

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Photo credit: AS Monaco