Folarin Balogun scored a goal as Monaco’s pursuit of a European place took a boost following a come-from-behind win over second-place Lens.
Lens 2-3 Monaco
It took Monaco just 10 minutes to turn a deficit into three crucial points, as they came away with the win over Lens at Stade Bollaert-Delelis.
Folarin Balogun started and played 85 minutes for the Red and Whites, taking four shots and making two recoveries.
The hosts opened the scoring three minutes into the contest when Odsonne Edouard’s volleyed strike hit the back of the net. The team went on to double their lead in the 56th minute through Florian Thauvin when he was on the spot to put back a blocked shot from goalkeeper Philipp Kohn.
Monaco responded six minutes later to cut the deficit. A poor pass from Lens’ back allowed Mamadou Coulibaly to make an interception and send the ball to the American forward fire his shot past Robin Risser. The score was leveled in the 70th minute when Denis Zakaria headed in a cross from Caio Henrique.
The visitors kept the momentum going, and they scored the eventual game-winner in the 72nd minute when Ansu Fati pounced on the loose ball and chipped his shot into the goal.
The win put Monaco in eighth place in the standings with 34 points, three behind Rennes and Lille for two of the European spots.
Notes
Elsewhere in Ligue 1, Tanner Tessmann played the full 90 for Lyon as they were beaten in a 3-1 defeat to Strasbourg.
Marseille was blanked in a 2-0 loss to Brest, with Tim Weah starting and playing the entire game for the fourth-place side.
Mark McKenzie was suspended for Toulouse due to yellow-card accumulation, while Luca Koleosho came off the bench to play 23 minutes for Paris FC as both sides settled for a 1-1 tie.
Follow Yanks Abroad on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn for news and views on Americans playing the beautiful game worldwide as well as the U.S. national teams.
