Nantes vs AS Monaco 11/08/18

11 August 2018

The last season Ligue 1 runners-up, AS Monaco, will kick-off a new league campaign at the Stade de la Beaujoire, with Nantes set to host the team from the principality. Les Canaris had experienced an average season in Ligue 1 last year, finishing 9th on the table, but Miguel Cardoso anticipates better results in his first season in charge of the French outlet. Following three consecutive wins in low-quality friendlies at the start of the summer, Nantes dropped in form, suffering three defeats in the next six matches, including a 2-1 loss to the league rivals Marseille. After two astonishing seasons in which they have also wrapped up a league title, Les Monégasques are hopeful to emerge as protagonists even this year, and they have every reason to aim high. Despite the fact, Fabinho left the Stade Louis II, the arrivals of Antonio Barreca from Torino and Aleksandr Golovin from CSKA Moscow gives the right to Monaco’s fans to dream big. However, Leonardo Jardim will have to do the plenty of work if looking to step up his team’s game that was quite uninspiring throughout the summer warm-up period where Monaco three losses out of six friendly matches before suffering a devastating 4-0 defeat to Paris Saint-Germain in the French Super Cup.

Three most prominent summer signings, Rene Krhin, Matt Miazga, and the former Manchester United right-back Fábio, should all get the chance to make their debuts for the Nantes, while Golovin might start from the bench for Monaco, with Keita Balde and Rony Lopes expected to join Falcao in the final third.