MONACO

Monaco against the Spanish teams, what does it give?

AS Monaco travels to Real Sociedad on Thursday (6:45 p.m.), on the occasion of the second day of the group stage of the Champions League. Before this match, return on the previous confrontations against the Spanish clubs in European Cups.

Since 1961, the date of its first participation in a European Cup, AS Monaco has had the opportunity to face teams from all over the Old Continent. But Spain is now the country that has provided the most opponents to the Monegasques who, this Thursday against Real Sociedad (6:45 p.m.), will face their new club based on the other side of the Pyrenees.

The first meeting with a Spanish club dates back to the 1980-1981 season, during which the Monegasques lost to Valencia (5-3 over all two matches) in 1uh Cup Winners’ Cup round. Valencia, which AS Monaco will meet again during the 2015-2016 Champions League play-offs, with a new elimination to the key (1-3, 2-1).

A double confrontation against Barça by Johan Cruyff

In 1989-1990, the Cup Winners’ Cup offered another clash against a Spanish club, this time in the quarter-finals against Real Valladolid. After two goalless draws, Arsène Wenger’s men qualified by winning on penalties.

The first matches in the Champions League date from 1993-1994, against FC Barcelona under Johan Cruyff. Two meetings and two defeats (0-2, 0-1), but a qualification for the semi-finals, just behind this great Barça.

La Coruna and Real Madrid in the legend

From the 2000s, meetings between Monegasques and Spaniards became more frequent. First in April 2000, with an elimination against Mallorca in the round of 16 of the UEFA Cup (1-4, 1-0), then with the apotheosis of the 2003-2004 season in the Champions League.

During their journey to the final of the C1, Ludovic Giuly and his gang will first cross the road to La Coruña in the group stage. If you have perhaps forgotten the short defeat in the first leg (0-1), we are sure that you still have in mind the festival carried out on the return to Louis-II (8-3), marked in particular by the quadruplet of Dado Prso.

A few weeks later, in the quarter-finals, it is the Galacticos of Real Madrid (Zidane, Ronaldo, Figo, Beckham, Raúl…) who will pass to the mill of the team of Didier Deschamps. Beaten 4-2 in the Spanish capital, the Red and Whites will turn things around on their return (3-1), in an unforgettable atmosphere.

A good qualifying against Villarreal

The following season, La Coruña found itself again on the way to the Monegasques in the group stage of the Champions League, with two new successes (2-0, 5-0). Less success, however, the following year, still in the Champions League, but this time during the 3e preliminary round against Real Betis (0-1, 2-2).

The last two oppositions against a Spanish club then gave birth to very different results, with a good qualification against Villarreal (2-1, 1-0) in the 2016-2017 Champions League play-offs, then two losses in the group stage against Antoine Griezmann’s Atlético de Madrid (1-2, 0-2) during the 2018-2019 season. This Thursday, on the lawn of Real Sociedad, a new page in this long history will therefore be written.

Record against Spanish clubs: 8 wins, 4 draws, 10 defeats

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