AS Monaco were denied victory by a last-gasp equaliser by former Monégasque Romain Faivre as Lorient salvaged a point against the league leaders (2-2). 

Monaco have been accustomed to coming from behind away from home. They did so against Clermont and Nantes, ultimately recovering to salvage a combined four points from those two games, and if they were to get anything against Lorient, they would have to do the same. Tosin Aiyegun needed just seconds to open his account as a Lorient player, latching onto a brilliant Eli Junior Kroupi ball to dink past Philipp Köhn, with a little help from the post.

Balogun nets first goal for Monaco

However, as they have for much of the season so far, Monaco soon settled into a rhythm that allowed them to control the game. Wissam Ben Yedder went close before a brilliant team goal, finished by Aleksandr Golovin, allowed the Principality club to draw level.

Whilst Les Monégasques continued to dominate possession, Lorient looked dangerous in transition with Tosin a constant menace, latching onto long balls over the top.

Monaco then took the lead in the second-half thanks to Folarin Balogun. The USMNT striker strikes needed just three minutes to make his mark having replaced Ben Yedder. He did well to work a scoring position before putting the ball past Yvon Mvogo from a tight angle.

“I am annoyed and frustrated.” – Hutter

However, it ultimately wouldn’t be enough for the three points. With the final kick of the game, Faivre latched onto Isaak Touré’s knock-down, blasting past Köhn on the half-volley to level the scores at 2-2. Regardless, Monaco remain top of the table, a place that they will retain regardless of results elsewhere this weekend.

“Of course, I am annoyed and frustrated,” began Hütter post-match. “It wasn’t our best match today but we still managed to bounce back after conceding first, which isn’t simple […] against a side that defends so much and that is so dangerous on the counter, it isn’t easy,” he added.

Things don’t get any easier for Hütter’s side in the coming weeks. The Stade Louis II will play host to two local derbies as OGC Nice and Olympique de Marseille both pay visits to the Principality in the next two weeks.

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Photo source: AS Monaco