Monaco’s worrying decline has shattered early season hopes

A few months ago, Monaco was performing well in the French league and impressing in the Champions League.

Now things are going wrong for coach Adi Hütter’s team.

In late October, Monaco’s 5-1 win over Red Star Belgrade extended their unbeaten streak to 11 games, including a significant win against Barcelona. This led to high praise for Hütter and his team’s bold playing style.

Things have changed a lot since then.

Monaco is now far behind in the Ligue 1 title race and is trailing Benfica in their Champions League playoff, with the second leg coming up next week.

Monaco is also out of the French Cup, making it unlikely they will win any trophies this season. The pressure is growing as they prepare for their home match against Nantes on Saturday.

Paris Saint-Germain, who are leading the league without a loss, are now 16 points ahead of Monaco, who are in fourth place. Monaco is also watching out for Lille, who are two points behind in fifth, and Lyon, who are four points behind in sixth.

After a strong start to the season, with a defense that allowed only four goals in the first eight games, Monaco is now struggling with defense, letting in goals far too easily.

Hütter’s team has lost six of their last ten games, including a defeat to the bottom team Montpellier. Monaco has kept only one clean sheet in their last 12 games and conceded 23 goals during that time, including 12 in their last five matches. Neither goalkeeper has been convincing, with Radoslaw Majecki making errors after taking over from Philipp Köhn.

Monaco no longer looks like the strong title contender it seemed to be earlier in the season.

Lyon is still aiming for a European spot next season and will start Sunday’s matches at Montpellier.

After taking charge, Fonseca promised to play a more attacking style, and Lyon has scored six goals in his two games so far, including a 4-0 win over Reims last weekend with four different players scoring.

Former France midfielder Corentin Tolisso, who won the World Cup in 2018, has regained his form and scored in both of Lyon’s games. Attacking midfielder Rayan Cherki played a role in all four goals against Reims.

“When you have Cherki at this level, it’s difficult for us to lose,” said Tolisso.

However, Cherki has been inconsistent in the past, and maintaining this form will be crucial for Lyon’s hopes of qualifying for Europe.

Fonseca’s other challenge is to help captain Alexandre Lacazette return to his goal-scoring form. After two strong seasons where he scored 46 goals in 64 matches, the former Arsenal forward has only scored six league goals this season.

But he should have chances to score against Montpellier, whose defense has allowed a league-worst 48 goals.

Ousmane Dembélé is in the best form of his career and will aim to score in his 11th straight game when his team travels to Toulouse on Saturday.

The France forward is the top scorer in Ligue 1 with 16 goals, three more than Marseille’s Mason Greenwood.

Marseille will host Saint-Etienne on Sunday with no visiting fans allowed due to the risk of clashes between rival supporters.