Monaco updated!

[Bridgey@Stockport]

EFL1 league game 17

Sevilla 1 - 1 Monaco

A game with little or no chances, mainly generated by the home side playing L and the away side playing E meant for a dour affair from two teams nearer the bottom of the table.

A victory for either side would have done wonders for their survival effort. It seemed that both sides didn’t want to loses rather than wanting to win.

The goal from the away side came from D Alaba who has chipped in with a fair few goals since coming in, despite him being bought to be a rock at the back the extra goals are more than welcome.

I’m hoping to move on from this game pretty quickly with the league leaders up next. I’ll need to prepare the lads to be on their A game as anything less will more than likely lead to a heavy defeat for the Monaco lads. As on paper Juve’s players are worlds apart on ability. Can teamwork overcome individual brilliance? I’m hoping that’s the case and this is what we watch the beautiful game for. Upsets and the dream of winning a David vs Goliath battle.

I’ve done it in the past vs AB, I remember a game a good few seasons ago. PSG vs Parma. I’ll never forget that night, the away side left PSG with 3 points and a 0-5 win. Great scenes, but that’s in the past and we need to look forward. Would a win top that Parma result? I think it would!

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[Bridgey@Stockport]

EFL1 League game 20

Real Madrid 6 - 0 Monaco

Another trip to Spain and another mauling. The top teams in this league are a cut above what we can handle at present, even if we setup to counter with tactical advantage we’re hoping to not lose too badly. Which is a terrible mentality, but that’s how strong these teams are.

We took 32 shots against us and 21 of them on target just shows how under pressure Monaco were by the home side. 3-0 at half time and 6 nil at full time, we didn’t put even put up the fight I require from my players.

We didn’t expect anything from the game and I think we played that way. We owe it to the other teams in the league to play at our best though and to at least keep the scoreline down for goal difference in the relegation fight. I’ll have another chat to the players similar to the one I had with the County players about what is needed and expected of them at the highest level. Maybe most of these guys won’t cut the mustard in this division but they need to prove that they can. They won’t get many bites of the cherry especially when you get beat that emphatically.

We have to take pride in the points we’ve accumulated up to now but the job isn’t done and we need to keep pushing to keep driving away from the relegation zone and I believe we can do it.

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[Bridgey@Stockport]

EFL1 League game 21

Monaco 0 - 1 AC Milan

Another loss, two in a row but at least we gave a much better account of ourselves in this one. AC Milan are another great side and we managed to keep the stats relatively even. The ability of the away side told though and they were able to steal the points.

We move on and we move on quickly, we need to make sure this slump doesn’t stretch into bad form. Two losses in a row can turn into the fact we can go double figures if games without a win and that can mean teams can catch us and we’re under real pressure. That’s how easy a slump can turn into bad form.

We will stick with the shape and formation though as that’s what’s got us where we are in the league. I’m confident that this way will give us more points and the points we need to keep up in EFL1. I don’t envisage making many more changes other than a loan here or there. The main plan for the team is to promote the youth sensation De La Pena to learn off of Ziyech in the few years he has left in the game. Pena will get every opportunity to theivr in the first team if I’m still in the hot seat come the end of the season. I believe this could save the club millions of pounds if this player turns into what I believe he could be.

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[Bridgey@Stockport]

EFL1 League game 22

Feyenoord 3 - 1 Monaco

Another game and another loss, this one stings a little more as it’s a fellow relegation fight rival. This one means 3 in a row and starting to get a little more worrisome.

Similar stats but the home sides striker Goncalves with a hat trick which means the home side take the points. Our best player unsurprisingly was Ziyech who continues to stand out. Hopefully he will still be around when De La Pena gets to the first team.

We need to get back to the races for the next game because I refuse to lose to Roma. A team on the decline after their change in manager, a few questionable transfers mean we should definitely win the relegation six pointer against them. I expect their manager to play passing as he always does and we will setup no differently other than more aggressively because if we do lose to them I’ll sack every player and remove myself as caretaker. So, it’s a great time to play Roma to get back to winning ways and kick start the second half of our season.

I still believe in the next 16 games we can reach the goal of 50 points. It will be a challenge but one that is achievable with hard work. Hard work pays off and we will show that is the case!

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[Bridgey@Stockport]

EFL1 league game 23

Monaco 2 - 0 Roma

As predicted an easy win against Roma. We predicted they would play passing and that’s how they setup.

One of the last games for S Jovetic meant he played a blinder and showed the visitors how good he was in his younger days. His brace and the fact the away side drew a blank meant we ran out comfortable winners.

The goals coming either side of half time and the man of the match going to A Telles. Meant it was a really good day at the office from the home side. It also means we go within 3 points of the away side in the league, which is definitely a huge fall from grace from last season.

Near the end of the game the home fans were heard chanting “Can we play you every week!”. The answer to that is definitely not unfortunately.

Next up is Celtic in the league, away. That will be a much more difficult game. As they are are around us in the lower half of the division and fighting for their survival too. We must use this result as a springboard otherwise we may as well have let Roma win to make them feel better about themselves.

On a side note S Jovetic will be moving on to Chelsea in a transfer for 21.5 million. He may very well be worth more than that after this game but a deal was agreed before this game and that price will be honoured.

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[Bridgey@Stockport]

EFL1 League game 24

Celtic 4 - 1 Monaco

What a waste of time winning the previous game so emphatically was. We attempted to play with 4 at the back for this one and it definitely didn’t work. We took the lead in the 11th minute through A Rabiot and from that point on we did pretty much nothing. Celtic scoring 4 unanswered goals.

We may need to tweak the formation further to score more and shore up at the back. Haidara is definitely a weak link for us, I’m hoping to move him on. Do we move him on and replace with a defender or a similar older player. With the market drying up we will see what’s out the but it maybe me need to loan and replace him at the end of the season. Gloukh will be coming in on loan to replace the hole left by Jovetic, as stated at least until EOS and that void will be filled again from our own infrastructure. There is no youth player to come in to replace Haidara unfortunately. That causes a problem but one for the new manager. We need to focus on the task in hand a massive game at home to Inter Milan, they will have a few missing players but they still have the skill to beat us without 3 of their usual back 4. We will look to win and help our cause for staying up! Let’s hope we do win!

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[Bridgey@Stockport]

EFL1 league game 25

Monaco 3 - 0 Inter Milan

The mighty Inter Milan were the visitors today in a must win game for Monaco. Despite the away side having a few absentees they are still a class act and this a game we had to give it all and be at our very best to take the points.

We gave up tactical advantage to play at our strengths and it worked out perfectly. A 3 - 0 win with seemingly no negatives. A clean sheet and the man of the match coming our way too!

The goals coming from new striker Politano, Alaba (Also man of the match) and Ziyech. All of this means we keep a safe distance away from the relegation zone. Making it a real possibility Monaco will be in EFL1 next season. With the results against some strong teams since coming in it’s nothing more than they deserve!

There are more difficult games coming up and we have to continue to give this level of performance as anything less means the relegation fight comes to us.

Plans for EOS:
There will be no further transfers for Monaco until next season or if a new manager comes in. There is no real point in me making any further changes as my ideas may differ from any potential new gaffer coming in. The only outstanding plan is to promote De La Pena to replace Jovetic who left recently, who was in turn replaced by the on loan Gloukh.

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[Bridgey@Stockport]

EFL1 league game 26

Barcelona 2 - 0 Monaco

After the mauling we had at home against Barca in the reverse fixture, we knew we had to put a shift in to rebuild some pride.

Both teams electing to go C meant for a tight affair in the first half. After the break though the home side opened up and two quick fire goals took the tension out of the game and the home side could relax.

A much better account of ourselves and I’m much happier with the performance not so much the result. The thing is with playing the big teams we switch off and these are the moments the bigger teams take advantage of.

Hopefully we will be back to full strength soon. I’m sure we could have took a point if we could have had our 5 at the back. That wasn’t to be so we move onto the next game, looking to push to that 50 point margin that will give us guaranteed safety. The lads have given it all and I know they will continue to do so until the final minute of the season. At that point we can promote De La Pena and head back to focus fully on Stockport County, walk away from Monaco as a job well done. I’m really happy with both caretaker jobs done this season at Monaco and Everton. I’m capable of taking a big job, let’s make Stockport that big job! With Windy’s help we will get there

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[Bridgey@Stockport]

EFL1 league game 27

PSG 9 - 2 Monaco

After a 2 - 2 draw in the reverse fixture PSG were out for revenge. Unfortunately, from our side that is exactly what happened. An experiment with playing Zinchenko as a DM and only playing a back four cumulated in the result.

Let’s not take anything away from PSG they hit everything on the number and it was their day. We can’t let this one off performance and result affect our mindset. We’ve been excellent and we’d be naive if we didn’t think that a result like this could derail us. We will be mentally resilient and won’t let this affect us. It will be a challenge as Will staying up, but we will make it happen.

We will return to a back 5 in the coming games and will take the game to our opponents by pushing for the win. You don’t get anywhere by being passive and I don’t want to get to a point where we’re running out of games and chasing points to be safe. Every game in these top divisions are difficult and we need to give ourselves every chance of safety as soon as possible.

We also, won’t be playing and replacing Haidara in defensive midfield. My coaches and I all agree that the use of a DM will hinder our open play and I believe we will be ok defensively without one and we will score more without basically having 7 defenders on the pitch.

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[Bridgey@Stockport]

EFL1 league game 28

Monaco 2 - 3 Fiorentina

After an undeserved win against Fio in the opposite fixture Neil Kirkby and his team were out for a bit of revenge. They showed this with the start they made. It took until 0-2 down for us to start playing, put pressure on them and pull one back and then equalise. I was hoping this would be a catalyst to push us on and us to score the winner. However, the winner came from the away side. We did take account for our previous game and push hard to rectify that result.

We came up short though against a good up coming side. These are the sides we need to keep up with, improve and push to become better. We will use this performance as a stepping stone to keep improving and turn the corner after a dip in results.

We still weren’t able to use 5 defenders which is hindering the team and my ability to coach in this league. Some would say my tinkering has caused this but we need to try these little changes as sometimes they can give us massive results, if they don’t, we live, learn adapt and move on. I’ll work on getting us back to 5 at the back this is the setup that will lead us to safety I’m adamant of that. Negotiations will continue to change the squad quickly and effectively to get the balance required to get us firing on all cylinders again.

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[Bridgey@Stockport]

EFL1 league game 29

Borussia Dortmund 1 - 4 Monaco

Back to 5 at the back and everything we hit turns to gold today. Dortmund are a team having one of those unlucky seasons and are definitely in a false position. They’re always a tough match especially away, but we managed to be very clinical. The stats show the home side had the lions share of the game, but not the goals and the result.

It seems our time investment to work out our optimal formation has paid off and this massive results against a team in and around us in the league table can’t be understated. We need to use this result as a springboard and being at the business end of the season this couldn’t be better in timing.

Unfortunately, an injury to one of the defenders means we’re back to a back four in our next game. We will do our best despite this but having seen how we are without that extra protection I feel only a draw will be on the cards even at home. The game against Sporting Lisbon is a big one at the bottom of the table and not a must win but a mustn’t lose game.

The high of this result will be completely flattened if we lose at home to Lisbon. It may lead us to a bad run in form at completely the wrong time it’s essential the lads are up for the game and the fight to stay up!

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[Bridgey@Stockport]

EFL1 league game 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35 and 36

Monaco 0 - 1 Sporting Lisbon (Zero points)
Atletico Madrid 1 - 0 Monaco (Zero points)
Monaco 1 - 1 Bayern Munich (1 point)
Bayer Leverkusen 1 - 2 Monaco (3 points)
Monaco 1 - 1 Napoli (1 point)
Lazio 2 - 3 Monaco (3 points)
Monaco 1 - 1 Sevilla (1 point)

9 points from a possible 21. Expected points 13.

Monaco are safe! The lads played for their lives and they managed it, they stayed up with 3 games to spare. The initial wobbles against Sporting Lisbon and Atletico Madrid it looked like it would be a struggle right to the final game. Sure we expected maximum points against Lisbon until the unexpected injuries hit and then at that point 1 point would have been expected. Away at Atletico we expected very little. But with our backs against the wall we managed another point to make it four against Bayern Munich this season. That seemed to be the catalyst to get us over the line, we then went to Bayern Leverkusen knowing only a win would do, Leverkusen could have made some serious ground on us if they won this relegation six pointer. We remained mentally tough and took a 1-2 win to ease the pressure on us for our fight for survival. Napoli next up and for the second time this season we dropped points against them and expecting more, we didn’t lose though against a team close to us in the league.

At that point we played bottom of the league Lazio. Should they be bottom? Definitely not, they have a great squad and although destined for EFL2 they will bounce back I’m sure. We took the game to them and in a tipsy turvy game heading to the 90th minute it was 2-2. We then were awarded a penalty and up steps Politano, with the weight of the world on his shoulders, knowing scoring the Pen would guarantee us safety he coolly slotted home and made that safety a reality. Amazing scenes after that goal and when the final whistle was blown. Monaco in EFL1 for at least another season means the job is done for me at Monaco. Was I ever in doubt? Unlike other stints as a caretaker in EFL1 confidently no I wasn’t in doubt. I had a feeling that the lads were very capable and the fans have helped the team much more than I have.

De La Pena as stated before will be promoted and that will be my final act in the hot seat at Monaco. I’m hoping a full time manager will be in place for the new season. If not I’ll hand over the more than capable squad over to another caretaker. We’ve driven the age down significantly since coming in, while maintaining the player quality as much as we could anyway. However, reducing the age further and other ideas to move them forward would need a better manager than me unfortunately. I need to put all my focus into Stockport County, I did get offered the Monaco hot seat out right but this isn’t my team after speaking with both boards. I removed any fears the County board had that I would definitely be staying, being my home town club and my home job wise there’s nothing out there that would tempt me to leave. The Monaco board were disappointed but understood and were so grateful for this seasons survival. They will start the look for a full time appointment immediately, they will take their time to appoint the right person but Monaco are a tough gig and only managers with strong stomach will look to plan their future and build them into a force into EFL1.

I’ve enjoyed every minute of this season in this role. It’s taught me so much that I can bring to Stockport’s development and I’m as grateful to them as they are to me for keeping them up. Hopefully I can attract the same calibre of players to Stockport that Monaco currently have to push them into the next level, they’ve been a pleasure to manage. Stockport have been ok, but they’re a work in progress, it will be good to fully reset EOS, bring the upgrades to the infrastructure in and start to push again.

I have to say the new side to the game in youth development is amazing, fully enjoying it even if County don’t catch up to the big boys, building the club from scratch has been amazing to be a part of. Well done Admins, well done JB!

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