Four English clubs AS Monaco have eliminated from the Champions League
French league leaders AS Monaco dumped Manchester City out of the UEFA Champions League last week with a 3–1 victory at the Stade Louis II stadium. While the match might have been overshadowed by Barcelona’s extraordinary comeback against PSG, Monaco’s achievement is no mean feat.
They have progressed to the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League, and again have an English scalp under their belt. Monaco have been utterly dominant over English sides in European competitions and have never lost to an English side in the Champions League/European Cup knockout stages, while beating no less than four English heavyweights along the way.
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They have also been dominant in the UEFA Cup, thrashing Newcastle United 4-0 on aggregate in a famous UEFA Cup quarterfinal in 1997. The only English side to defeat Monaco in a knock-out tie have been Leeds United who beat them 3-0 at Monaco, before winning the return leg 1-0 at Elland Road during the first round of the 1995 UEFA Cup.
This list takes a look at Monaco’s exemplary Champions League knockout stage record against English clubs and the four English clubs that have felt the wrath of the French side
#1 Monaco* 6-6 Manchester City – Round of 16, 2016-17
Monaco weren’t expected to trouble Manchester City when they drew each other in the Round of 16 of this year’s Champions League. Pep Guardiola’s men seemed to underline that point when Raheem Sterling put the Citizens ahead in the 26th minute of the first leg tie at the City of Manchester Stadium. But what followed was completely unprecedented.
Monaco showed how they had beaten Tottenham twice in the group stages as they took the fight to the City half of the pitch.
Premier League reject Radamel Falcao put Monaco level and then the Principality side proceeded to take the lead twice – first through Kylian Mbappe and then through Falcao again. But City levelled twice to bring the score to 3-3. John Stones and Leroy Sane would score two more goals for City as Pep’s men finally came out 5-3 winners.
The three away goals that Monaco scored in Manchester never really came up in the discussion before the return leg as most pundits predicted the English side to progress in a canter. The fact that top scorer Falcao would be out of the return leg only added to the optimism around Manchester.
Monaco had other ideas, though.
Mbappe and Fabinho ensured that Monaco erased City’s advantage within the first 30 minutes. Sane did give City the advantage when he made it 2-1 in the 71st minute, meaning that City would progress 6-5 on aggregate if the scores remained undisturbed. But it took Monaco just five minutes to strike back.
Tiemoue Bakayoko beat Willy Cabarello for the third time on the night as Monaco regained the advantage of the tie on away goals. It stayed 3-1 till the end as Leonardo Jardim’s side rolled on to the next round.