The fate of PSG's championship was determined in the central match of the 27th round of Ligue 1, but the Parisians did not take part in this game because Monaco and Nice met in the Côte d'Azur derby. A draw in this match would have allowed Luis Enrique's team to become the winners of the tournament ahead of schedule, seven rounds before the end of the season, but this did not happen.
It should also be noted that this match was important in terms of the fight for a place in the top 4 of the French championship. The hosts took the initiative from the very first minutes, trying to quickly open the scoring. Batista Santamaria's mistake in the 4th minute of this match led to a penalty, but Mika Bieret failed to convert the kick from the penalty spot.
Despite the missed penalty, the Monaco players continued to attack. Takumi Minamino and Magnes Akliouch had several really dangerous moments, but no goals were scored. The Red and Whites put pressure on their opponents' goal in the first 20 minutes, but later the initiative passed to Nice. Subsequently, one of the attacks by Franck Eze's charges ended with a logical goal in the 37th minute. The goal was scored by Jeremy Boga, who returned to the starting lineup of the “eagles” for the first time since November last year. The minimal advantage of the visitors after the break looked like a fairly fair result.
The Monegasques came out for the second half with a noticeable desire to equalize. They began to play even more actively near the Nice penalty area. In the 55th minute, Bieret, who had missed a penalty, scored from play. The Dane hit the ball very hard into the near corner of the goal, waiting for a pass from Akliush. The goalkeeper was unable to block anything.
The tension in this match grew with each passing minute. Akliush tried to create chances, but he was unable to score a goal that evening. In the 60th minute, he failed to capitalize on his one-on-one with the opposing goalkeeper. Marcin Bulka did not allow himself to be beaten. Later, the referee did not award a penalty for a foul against the 23-year-old Frenchman, after consulting with his assistants on VAR. The second half was entirely in the hosts' favor.
Finally, in the 73rd minute, the Red and Whites managed to take the lead. Breel Embolo scored a superb goal, having dealt with the defenders in the penalty area. Akliouch recorded his second assist of the game. After that, Nice had almost no chance of getting back on their feet. Dante's sending off in injury time should have buried any hopes for the visitors, but they had nothing to lose, so they decided to make a final assault, but the score remained unchanged.
The win moves Monaco into second place in the Ligue 1 standings with 50 points, while Marseille are third with 49 points and Nice remain fourth with 47.
League 1. Round 27
Stadium: Stade Louis II (Monaco)
Referee: Jerome Brizard (France)
Monaco 2-1 Nice
Goals: Bieret (55), Embolo (73) – Boga (41)
*In the 5th minute Mika Bieret missed a penalty (goalkeeper)
“Monaco”: Kyon – Caio Henrique, Mavissa, Kehrer, Shingo – Minamino (Diatta, 84), Camara (Al-Musrati, 89), Zakaria, Akliush – Embolo (Golovin, 84), Bieret (Balogun, 76)
“Nice”: Bulka – Dante, Ndayishimiye, Bombito (Diop, 76) – Abdi (Louche, 76), Santamaria (Moffie, 82), Rosario (Budaoui, 67), Kloss – Boga, Shaw (Laborde, 67), Guessan
Booked: Embolo (27), Mavissa (51) – Kloss (45), Santamaria (72), Laborde (87), Boudaoui (87)
Removal: Dante (90+1)
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