Despite their victory in the first leg (3-2), Monaco was eliminated by Bayer Leverkusen on Thursday on penalties (5-3), in the return play-off to the 8th finals of the Europa League, after having inclined 3-2 also at home (2-3). This elimination, which occurred after 120 breathtaking minutes played at a sustained pace, will inevitably have repercussions on the rest of the season for Monaco, which now only has Ligue 1 as its objective.
From Sunday, Philippe Clement’s men will have to get up to compete in the Côte d’Azur derby against Nice. But the bodies and the heads will be very tired. Because after a failed first period, Monaco had managed to snatch extra time and even dominate its opponent. But without making a difference.
Complicated evening
But Alexander Nübel, who touched Moussa Diaby’s last shot on goal, did not repel one. While Eliot Matazo hit his on the crossbar. The Monegasques did not take long to understand that the evening would be complicated despite the goal in advance acquired in the first leg. The ex-Parisian Mitchell Bakker launched the hostilities. Next (2nd). The French Amine Adi, replacing the international Moussa Diaby, insufficiently recovered to start, then played Mohamed Camara to place a nice shot from the left that Alexander Nübel diverted for a corner (11th).
The German goalkeeper of Monaco had a much less firm hand on the next action. Florian Wirtz took advantage of the awkwardness of the Monegasque goalkeeper on Jeremie Frimpong’s center back, to give the advantage to the Germans (0-1, 13th). In less than a quarter of an hour, everything had to be redone for borrowed Monegasques. Fortunately for them, the young Eliesse Ben Seghir continues to remain at an excellent level. Edmond Tapsoba suffered his finesse. And Wissam Ben Yedder scored the penalty following the fault of the German defender (1-1, 19th).
Decisive Embolo
But this goal was not going to prevent Xavi Alonso’s men from continuing to attack. Two minutes after the Azure equalizer, Exequiel Palacios, left alone at the entrance to the surface, took advantage of a failed clearance and suspicious positioning by Malang Sarr, who also played a good game, to restore the advantage to Leverkusen with a powerful shot (1-2, 21st).
Without Nübel’s one-handed save on an attempt by this same Palacios (34th), Monaco would have sunk before the break. However, despite a better controlled collective recovery, Monaco once again bowed. Bleuet Adli jumped much higher than Caio Henrique, overtaken on the action, to score with a header on a cross from Wirtz (1-3, 59th) and validate German domination.
Unhappy with shots on goal
Then qualified, the men of Xavi Alonso countered. They had the opportunity to kill the match. A Bakker goal was disallowed for offside and Adam Hlozek wasted a match point too. But he did not fit (69th). Monaco, to whom a goal offered extra time, played its all out. Ben Yedder hit the crossbar (60th), Ben Seghir fell on a very good Lukas Hradecky (71st), with the incoming quintet Diop-Matazo-Jakobs-Embolo-Boadu having about twenty minutes to overthrow the situation.
And Embolo did it! Edan Diop, of which it was the first in pro, shifted Diatta. His cross at the far post found the victorious header from the Swiss striker (2-3, 85th). Despite a header from Kevin Volland released by Hradecky (118th), Monaco did not manage to win in extra time. And the shots on goal were relentless…