Paris Saint-Germain and AS Monaco faced off this Friday at the Parc des Princes in Matchday 25 of the 2025-2026 Ligue 1 season. The match ended in a 3-1 defeat for PSG. After the game, Monaco coach Sébastien Pocognoli spoke at a press conference.
Pocognoli: “We implemented an ambitious game plan.”
The plan to outmaneuver PSG?
“The same as the last match, quite simply.”
The scenes of jubilation after the third goal?
“It’s a team victory. To return to the previous question, we implemented an ambitious pressing game plan, much like in the three previous matches against PSG. With a different system, but with the same principles. The players who came on performed very well. There’s a winning mentality that’s been developing for a few weeks, even a few months.”
Pocognoli: “These regrets will remain.”
Regrets about the Champions League elimination against PSG?
I’m proud of them, but I was also proud of the last match (in the Champions League). We finished three matches with ten men. So yes, I do have regrets about the last Champions League match. These regrets will remain. But I’m very proud of how we reacted today.
I had presented this match as a final chapter against PSG, with one win, one draw, and one loss, five goals conceded, and five goals scored. I told the players that they had to win this final match. They did it. “I’m not saying there was a spirit of revenge, but a desire to confirm what we hadn’t been able to finish, and today they did it,” remarks reported by Le Figaro.
The Monaco coach has every reason to be happy and proud of his players. They displayed great collective energy, with a lot of solidarity to withstand PSG’s possession. The plan worked, partly thanks to the intensity provided by all the players. A plan that wasn’t far from allowing them to knock Paris out of the Champions League. It’s a small revenge, even if Pocognoli rightly points out that the regrets won’t disappear.
We need to focus on this match, with 3 important points in the race for European places and some very promising players. Be careful, we’ve often seen teams relax after a big win against Paris. And Monaco has certainly had problems with inconsistency this season.
Also, even though we know that the prevailing sentiment since yesterday is that nothing is going right for PSG and that Monaco They played a fantastic match; one could highlight that Paris dominated. 20 shots to 11, 72% possession, 90% pass completion rate compared to 75%, 15 aerial duels won compared to 2, 7 corners to 3, according to Whoscored. But there was a significant gap in efficiency, with PSG coming close to converting crosses in the six-yard box, but just a bit short. There was also a clear difference in accuracy: 6 shots on target to 6.
Of course, Paris needs to do better, needs to regain collective confidence and energy to control the game even more. But Monaco has quality and can certainly cause problems. However, the Parisians weren’t that far from winning in terms of their overall performance.
