AS Monaco enjoyed an emphatic 2-4 victory in Lens on the evening of Sunday, January 30. Team captain Wissam Ben Yedder opened the scoring with an unstoppable header, making it 1-0 at the 18th minute.
Monaco midfielder Jean Lucas startled the hosts with a shot from close range, doubling the score at the 27th minute. The visiting Monegasques further shocked Lens with a third goal within a few minutes of the first. Lucas, again decisive, found his Monaco teammate Sofiane Diop who found the back of the net 11 minutes later.
Lens winger Wesley Saïd managed to beat Vito Mannone between the Principality’s posts just before half time, bringing the score to 1-3 just seconds before halftime.
After an entertaining first half, Lens were quick to narrow the gap to their visitors, scoring again at the 53rd minute.
A tense 20 minutes of football ensued, with Mannone proving to be crucial in keeping Monaco ahead as Lens kept the pressure up.
However, captain Ben Yedder put an end to the suspense by scoring again at the 88th minute, having been assisted by an accurate Aurelian Tchouameni.
With a late effort by the skipper to solidify a 2-4 victory at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis, Monaco knocked Lens out of the Coupe de France, and advance to the quarter finals of the tournament.
In the meantime, Monaco will host Lyon for a regular Ligue 1 fixture in the Stade Louis II on Saturday, February 5.
PHOTO: Courtesy ASM
