Ligue 1 McDonald’s, Round 11, 01/11/25

AS Monaco suffered their first defeat of the Sébastien Pocognoli era at the hands of Paris FC (1-0). Moses Simon’s goal proved to be the difference between the two sides.

The Match 

Both of these teams expended plenty of energy in midweek, with Monaco beating FC Nantes in an eight-goal thriller and Paris FC coming from three goals down to draw 3-3 with Olympique Lyonnais. Maybe it shouldn’t have come as a surprise that it was such a lethargic first 45 minutes at the Stade Louis II. 

Les Parisiens went the closest to taking the lead. Jean-Philippe Krasso struck the post from a corner and when the ball was worked back in, Moustapha Mbow could only head wide, despite being under no pressure. Krépin Diatta went close with a curled effort, but the hosts couldn’t find the pass to unlock Paris FC’s defence. 

Pocognoli saw the need for change at half-time and hooked Kassoum Ouattara and Mika Biereth, but those changes did not have the desired effect. It was one of the players that came on, Stanis Idumbo, who was at fault, over-committing in a challenge on Maxime Lopez. The PFC captain simply sidestepped the Belgian and had the time to pick out Moses Simon, whose scuffed effort went above the diving Philipp Kohn. 

The Principality club struggled to respond. Maghnes Akliouche went close after a neat one-two with Folarin Balogun, drawing an excellent save from Kevin Trapp, but that was all Les Monégasques could muster. 

It is only Monaco’s second defeat at home in 2025, their first this season, and their first in Ligue 1; the honeymoon period is over for Pocognoli. 

Monaco player ratings

Philipp Kohn – 5

Caio Henrique – 5

Mohammed Salisu – 5

Thilo Kehrer – 6

Kassoum Ouattara – 4

Replaced by Stanis Idumbo (2) at half-time. This is the game in which Monaco’s lack of quality in the wing-back positions was exposed. Ouattara struggled, was outpaced on several occasions, and brought little going forward. He was replaced by Idumbo, who it was hoped would bring more going forward. He didn’t, and he was more defensively fragile, too, at fault for Paris FC’s goal.

Mamadou Coulibaly – 6

Jordan Teze – 4

Krépin Diatta – 3

Maghnes Akliouche – 5

Aleksandr Golovin – 5

Mika Biereth – 3

The Dane is clearly struggling currently and couldn’t make an impact. He was replaced by Folarin Balogun (5) at half-time.

Selected Paris FC player ratings

Ilan Kebbal – 6

So influential, his technical brilliance shone once again. He is so important in deeper areas for Les Parisiens and helps them to break out and transition. 

Pierre Lees-Melou – 4

Jean-Philippe Krasso – 5

Moses Simon – 6

Maxime Lopez – 7