Ilenikhena fires Monaco to late win in Auxerre!
Once again, they left it late, and once again AS Monaco picked up a tough win, beating Auxerre on the road, 2-1 to go joint top of Ligue 1 McDonald's. Catch up on all the action from the Stade Abbé-Deschamps with our Matchday 4 recap.
A wild first half
After a picking up a win in the sixth minute of stoppage time against Strasbourg before the break, Monaco were looking to have a less nerve-shattering encounter away to Auxerre, especially with an eye on Thursday's Champions League match in Belgium. To do so, Adi Hütter heavily rotated his team, giving a first league start to teenager midfielder Aladji Bamba and lining up an entirely new back four. There were new faces in the mix for the hosts as well, with Sékou Mara making his debut in attack, while highly-touted Porto loanee Danny Namaso made his second start.
The hosts were ready to play, and Namaso would have the match's first chance, with an effort that skimmed the post. Monaco responded with some fine interplay between Folarin Balogun and Mika Biereth, but the American missed the target. The first half was breathless, and midway through it, Mara forced a stunning save from Philipp Köhn. Just when it looked to be honors even before the break, though, Takumi Minamino -- the Principality side's savior a fortnight ago -- popped with a clever finish at the back post, making it 1-0 on the stroke of halftime.
89th minute drama! 😍
George Ilenikhena delivers with a BIG header! 🔥🇳🇬 pic.twitter.com/Jo386N97XG— Ligue 1 English (@Ligue1_ENG) September 13, 2025
Auxerre see red before cruelly conceding
The second half was played at a tempo as equally blistering as it had been in the first, with the Monégasques looking the more likely to double their lead as first Biereth and then Caio Henrique looked to test goalkeeper Théo de Percin. That dominance looked to be even more ironclad after the sending-off of Josué Casimir with twenty minutes to play, but an own goal from Mohamed Salisu saw the hosts level against the odds (73')
Monaco threw everything forward in search of a winner, and were inches from finding one as Thilo Kehrer's header crashed off the crossbar. With just minutes left, it was teenage substitute George Ilenikhena who would put his side ahead, delivering a powerful header from Vanderson's cross (89'). Köhn would have to do well to keep out an effort from Ibrahim Osman in added time, but come the final whistle, Les Monégasques would head home with a win and a share of top spot in the league table.
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