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Ligue 1 Preview: Auxerre – Monaco

It’s third against fourth in Burgundy, with AJA aiming to keep up their fine recent run against les Monegasques…

Nov 20, 2009 12:00:59 PM

Ligue 1 : Ireuneusz Jelen (Auxerre) vs Christophe Landrin (Saint-Etienne)

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Ligue 1 : Ireuneusz Jelen (Auxerre) vs Christophe Landrin (Saint-Etienne)

Teams

Kick-Off: Saturday, November 20, 2009. 21:00 CET
Stade Abbe-Deschamps, Auxerre

Six Of The Best

Le Championnat’s top match on Saturday evening will take place in Burgundy, where the resurgent forces of Auxerre and Monaco will meet in an attempt to consecrate their place in the top five.

Although AJA hail from the small town of Auxerre, which has a population of less than 40,000, they have been major players in French football for some time, with their peak coming in season 1995-96, when they actually claimed the crown. Indeed, that season the club won the double, and they have won the Coupe de France an impressive four times in the last 16 seasons.

Their star has faded in recent times, though they remain a consistent top ten outfit, with an aberration of 15th two seasons ago very much the exception. It is therefore something of a surprise that it has been 45 months since they sat in the top three positions in Le Championnat, exactly where they are perched now.

It has taken a superb run of six consecutive victories to push them to such lofty heights after an abject start to the campaign, which saw AJA go four matches without even scoring.

Since then, Ireneusz Jelen has recovered from injury and has gradually clicked into gear, leading Jean Fernandez’s troops on a fine run of wins, which started in earnest with a terrific triumph away to Stade Rennes and continued with a home success over champions Girondins de Bordeaux.

Rescaling The Heights

Monaco hail from the tiny but affluent principality of the same name, which boasts a population of only around 30,000, though the surroundings of the Mediterranean Sea and opulent apartments contrast somewhat to the environment in Auxerre. And like AJA, les Monegasques have historically punched above their weight, claiming seven league titles and even reaching the Champions League final in 2000.

While the heights that they scaled are greater than their hosts this weekend managed, their fall into mediocrity over the last four years has been marginally sharper, with no top eight finish in any of the last four years.

Guy Lacombe was appointed this summer in an attempt to arrest that nasty slide, and the former Paris Saint-Germain boss has been relatively successful to date. Monaco were as high as second until Halloween, when defeat to Bordeaux prevented them from reaching the top spot and even knocked them down a little.

Since then they have struggled to recover, with a wholly unsatisfactory 0-0 draw against previously pointless Grenoble immediately before the international break highlighting their over-reliance on the excellence of Nene, who was suspended for that game.

Ligue 1’s top scorer will not even be able to play this weekend, as a right thigh problem has rendered him unavailable, a real headache for Lacombe going to France’s most in-form outfit.

FORM

Auxerre

WON 1-0 (a) Le Mans (Ligue 1, Matchday 13, November 7)

WON 2-1 (h) Montpellier (Ligue 1, Matchday 12, October 31)

WON 3-2 (h) Lille (Ligue 1, Matchday 10, October 25)

WON 1-0 (h) Girondins de Bordeaux (Ligue 1, Matchday 9, October 17)

WON 1-0 (a) Stade Rennais (Ligue 1, Matchday 8, October 3)

Monaco

DRAW 0-0 (h) Grenoble (Ligue 1, Matchday 13, November 7)

LOST 1-0 (a) Girondins de Bordeaux (Ligue 1, Matchday 12, October 31)

WON 3-1 (a) Boulogne-Sur-Mer (Ligue 1, Matchday 10, October 24)

WON 2-0 (h) Racing Club de Lens (Ligue 1, Matchday 9, October 18)

WON 2-1 (a) Olympique de Marseille (Ligue 1, Matchday 8, October 4)

TEAM NEWS

Auxerre

Former Monaco striker Alexandre Licata continues to miss out for AJA. He has yet to debut since switching from the principality club in the summer. Kevin Lejeune is another long-term absentee for the Burgundy outfit.

Valter Birsa helped Slovenia qualify for the World Cup, so the squad player may be allowed a breather on the bench after an exhausting week.

Probable Starting XI: Sorin; Hengbart, Coulibaly, Mignot, Grichting; Oliech, Chafni, Pedretti, Capoue; Jelen, Niculae

Monaco

Bad news for Guy Lacombe as Nene was ruled out on Thursday evening. Vincent Muratori was expected to make his return to the side, but he is likely to be considered unfit. In addition, Jean-Jacques Gosso misses out due to illness and Francois Modesto has been given compassionate leave.

Probable Starting XI: Ruffier; Adriano, Mongongu, Puygrenier, Traore; Alonso, Nkoulou, Coutadeur, Mollo; Gudjohnsen, Park

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Auxerre

Courted by Juventus, according to reports in the press, Polish striker Ireneusz Jelen has been one of the best strikers in Ligue 1 over the last 18 months when he’s been fit. Having notched an impressive 14 goals in 26 games last term, the 28-year-old has started to grind into such form after an injury-plagued start to the campaign. He now has four goals in seven encounters, though they have all come at home.

Monaco

Les Monegasques are unlikely to have any major issues in their defensive sector in Burgundy, but they may just have some problems creating chances. Having made his second start of the season against Grenoble prior to the international break, young winger Yohan Mollo looked their main threat going forward. Perhaps not as consistent as Park Chu-Young, he has the capability of being even more devastating.

PREDICTION

Auxerre were poor in their previous match, but they managed to find a way to defeat Le Mans 1-0. This is rather typical of the gritty style that Jean Fernandez’s side have employed of late, and they will likely have just a little bit too much for Monaco, who remain one of the sides in Le Championnat who have the potential to produce Champaign football on occasion.

Auxerre 1-0 Monaco

Robin Bairner, Goal.com

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