The highly anticipated meeting between AS Monaco and Paris Saint-Germain ended in a goalless draw at the sold-out Stade Louis II on the evening of Friday, March 1, despite many opportunities on either end of the pitch.
Monaco maintained their fierce form following the 2-3 win against Lens in the previous weekend, as they largely controlled the first half of the fixture against Ligue 1 leading PSG.
Paris goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma was challenged by Folarin balogun, Takumi Minamino, Maghnes Akliouche and Wissam Ben-Yedder, with the skipper even finding the back of the net at the 25th minute only to be flagged offside.
Kylian Mbappé was substituted off in the first minute of the second half, before greeting fans of his former club and joining his mother in the stands. PSG manager Luis Enrique justified his decision, saying that “Sooner or later we will play without Mbappé, we have to get used to that,” as the superstar prepares to depart Paris at the end of the season for a blindingly bright future with Real Madrid.
The visiting Parisians woke up in the second half, and it was up to Monaco goalkeeper Radoslaw Majecki to keep them at bay. The Polish goalie made a handful of serious saves to repel Bradley Barcola and Vitinha, keeping the scoreline empty until the final whistle marked a 0-0 draw between the two giants of the French championship.
The single point that Monaco obtained from this fixture will still go a long way, as the Monegasques continue to occupy third place in the league table, ahead of their upcoming match against Strasbourg on Sunday, March 10.
Featured image courtesy of AS Monaco
