The European campaign was supposed to bring some cheer to the end of the Monaco season. In the end, it only underscores the recurring difficulties faced by the rockers, who have been very erratic since the start of the season. Able to win at the Orange Velodrome (0-1), then lose at the fourth stadium in the Portuguese championship (2-0) a few days later. Against Braga on Thursday 10 March, Wissam Ben Yedder’s teammates struggled with much hope of a better return to the emirate.
Leading up to the goal from the third minute after a pattern of defensive scrambling, ASM faced turmoil in the first few minutes. Due to the high pressure from the Portuguese bloc, only Philippe Clement players responded enthusiastically and ceded a number of dangerous opportunities. From the Nübel parade to life-saving posts, Monaco has sometimes seemed to hang by a thread.
After thirty minutes defending and sweating profusely, Monaco led by Gelson Martins – one of the few capable of creating chances. – I finally managed to push the Portuguese defense to its limits. With a small ball stained from the right, the latter scored the equalizer. Offside position is not allowed. It was the same a few minutes later with a header from Captain Ben Yedder.
Our red and white team lose in Braga. The return match is next Thursday at Stade Louis II.#UEL | #SCBASM ‣ 2-0 pic.twitter.com/SPGqibEsQt
– AS Monaco (@AS_Monaco) March 10, 2022
After this wave of pride, Monaco continued to suffer when they returned from the locker room. It was neither sharp, nor dangerous, despite the possession in their favour (62-38%), the red and white sometimes surprised by the counterattack. In total, despite not having the ball, the Portuguese fired more on goal (15 shots for Braga, 9 for Monaco), and also put the hits better (6 shots on goal at 3). At the end of the match, substitute Vitor Oliveira doubled the score to allow his team to approach the second leg with a more comfortable rank.
Now at a disadvantage, Monaco will play big, Thursday 17 March (6:45 pm), in the second leg. After Philippe Clement and his players were obligated to score at least two goals, they will surely show another face. This winter, due to his particular desire to present an attacking ball, the Belgian coach was recruited. It is now up to him to prove that his reputation was not raped.
