Monaco 3-1 PSG: 5 Talking Points as Ben Yedder runs riot to secure a massive result

Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) fell to a 3-1 defeat at the hands of AS Monaco in Ligue 1 on Saturday, February 11.

Monaco arrived for this contest on the back of a five-game unbeaten run in which they have won three and drawn two games. They secured a comfortable 2-0 win away to Clermont Foot in their last league outing. They were 10 points behind PSG prior to kick-off and were looking to get a result to shorten the gap.

The Parisians, on the other hand, have won three, lost one, and drawn one of their last five games across competitions. However, Christophe Galtier was dealt two blows as both Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe faced considerable injury layoffs. Despite the problems, he fielded a strong lineup.

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AS Monaco made a determined start to the game and looked the more dangerous of the two sides in the initial exchanges. Wissam Ben Yedder set-up Aleksandr Golovin as the Monegasque outfit raced into an early lead after just four minutes. Ben Yedder then turned goalscorer as he dispatched a pass from Krepin Diatta to make it 2-0 after just 18 minutes.

PSG were left shell-shocked as they looked to find a way back into the game by hook or crook. The teams shared possession fairly evenly in the first period, with the visitors edging it 54 to 46. However, the Parisians attempted just six shots with two on target compared to Monaco's 11 shots with seven on target in the first half.

The visitors pulled one goal back as Juan Bernat set up Warren Zaire-Emery. However, Monaco restored their two-goal advantage on the stroke of half-time as Ben Yedder added his second, assisted by Eliesse Ben Seghir. PSG trailed 3-1 at the interval.

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Both managers turned to their respective benches for the second half as they looked to alter the course of the game as per their requirements. However, with PSG suffering somewhat of an injury crisis, Galtier had limited reinforcements to choose from.

The visitors continued to dominate possession in the second period and put Monaco under tremendous pressure. The hosts chased the ball for lenghty spells but did not seem to lose focus even for a split-second, maintaining a rigid shape in defense. Their efforts were enough to see their lead out and secure an all-important 3-1 win over the defending champions PSG.

On that note, let's take a look at the five talking points from the game.

#5. PSG's attack is toothless without Messi and Mbappe

Mbappe limped out of PSG's game two weeks back while Lionel Messi was injured last week. The former is out indefinitely with a seemingly serious knee injury, while the latter is out until at least next week, with several hoping he will return in time to face Bayern Munich in the UCL.

Without the star pair, Neymar is left with it all to do as he is tasked with the responsibility of being the main creative outlet as well as scoring goals. However, with no other players on the same wavelength as the Brazilian, he often struggles without Messi or Mbappe.

Hugo Ekitike, too, clearly lacks experience as evident from his runs and positioning in certain situations. Playing with Messi and Mbappe would surely help him develop as he can learn from the world's best.

#4. Wissam Ben Yedder is in red-hot form

Ben Yedder was nominated for Ligue 1's Player of the Month award alongside Alexis Sanchez of Marseille and Przemyslaw Frankowski of RC Lens for the month of January. The diminutive forward backed up his nomination with a performance for the ages as he carried Monaco to victory against PSG.

Ben Yedder scored a first-half brace and also provided an assist for Golovin, who scored the team's second goal. He put in a captain's performance which was also worthy of being named player of the match.

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#3. PSG lack serious options off the bench

With several defenders of varying experience levels among their ranks, manager Galtier faces a challenge each week as to which three defenders will make his lineup.

Presnel Kimpembe made his return to action as he replaced Vitinha late in the game, while Sergio Ramos replaced the struggling El Chadaille Bitshiabu. Achraf Hakimi, too, started from the bench and came on for the second period. However, the visitors had no serious replacements for their forwards with their two marquee players ruled out due to injuries.

#2. PSG starting XI had an average age of 24.6 years

With four key players out with injuries, PSG are often forced to rely on their youth academy and fringe players to come on and make an impact off the bench. With Renato Sanches and Nordi Mukiele out, the Parisians are missing key rotational components who made it easy for Galtier to manage everybody's workload.

Now, with teams entering the crunch period of the season, results hold the most importance so teams will increasingly play to win. In such situations, the manager is left in a fix as he is sometimes forced to bring on a player not ready for the demands of the situations, which could ultimately prove costly.

#1. Philippe Clement is overseeing Monaco's resurgence

It was only the 2016-17 season when AS Monaco rocked up and shocked the whole of Europe as they marched to the Ligue 1 title. With superstars such as Kylian Mbappe, Bernardo Silva, and Fabinho in the team, that squad managed by Leonardo Jardim seemingly knew no limits.

However, the manager was sacked the following season and he had another spell with the club recently as well. After finishing 17th and 9th in 2019 and 2020 respectively, the club finished thrice in two consecutive seasons in 2021 and 2022. Now, under Clement, the team is pushing for a top 2 finish to guarantee them a spot in next year's Champions League.