Monaco used home advantage to win 2-1 over Barcelona in their first match of the new Champions League season. In addition to the comfort of their own stadium, the duel with the Catalan giants was made more pleasant by the expulsion of Eric García in the 11th minute. Both teams prevailed in the first half, with Lamine Yamal officiating for Barca as usual. After the change of sides, George Ilenikhena, the newly 18-year-old reinforcement from Antwerp, took advantage of the home team’s dominance.
Monaco could hardly have asked for a better start to their first Champions League game since the 2018/19 season. Just over ten minutes had passed when García found himself in trouble following a pass from Marc-André ter Stegen. When the Spaniard was dispossessed by Takumi Minamino, the defender pulled on the emergency brake and was the last player to tackle the Japanese to the ground, resulting in a red card. It did not take Monaco long to capitalize on the advantage. Shortly after, Maghnes Akliouche hit the near post after a separate penetration.
However, Barcelona responded in almost identical fashion. Seventeen-year-old prodigy Yamal took the match into his own hands and promptly equalized from the right. Only an offside flag prevented Wilfried Sing from putting AS back in front before the break when he slotted home from inside the penalty area.
After the change of sides, the dominance of the home team continued. Monaco tried for a long time to break the defense of the Catalan team in vain, ter Stegen also had his merits. The pressure eventually proved too much for Barcelona. Substitute Ilenikhena, on his debut in the millionaire competition, impressively broke through to the goal to give Monaco the lead back. Another substitute, Folarin Balogun, almost closed the game shortly after, but ter Stegen managed to tip his awkward shot to the near post.
Five minutes from time, Iňigo Martínez brought down Balogun in the penalty area, leading to a penalty kick. The original decision was eventually reversed by the judge after reviewing the video. However, it did not affect the result and Monaco maintained their impressive unbeaten start to the season.
