'A new beginning': Filipe Luís era at Monaco begins in Poland
AS Monaco's 2026/27 season officially gets underway on Thursday night when they make the journey to Poland to face Górnik Zabrze in their UEFA Europa Conference League qualifier.
Hradecky: 'It's a new beginning'
"The Europa Conference League is a beautiful competition," said Filipe Luís as he prepares to take charge of his first competitive game with Les Monégasques. The Brazilian will be desperate to take part in it; beating Górnik Zabrze over two legs will ensure that they do so. However, their is no question of them underestimating their Polish counterparts.
"I watched a lot of their games this season and from this season, too. They have clear ideas, have dangerous players, players who want the ball and have the quality to play," said Luís.
Górnik Zabrze had qualified for the Champions League, but failed to get through the qualifiers before then failing to progress against Ferencvaros in the Europa League qualifier.
"For the club, and for me, it is very important to qualify. Monaco needs to be playing European competitions. We believe that we can have a beautiful competition, but first we need to win this game. But this is not an easy opponent; there are no easy opponents in Europe," added Luís.
It is an exciting time for Monaco. A "new beginning", as Lukas Hradecky put it in his pre-match press conference.
Abline, Balogun, Fati doubts
"I know the coach played at a top level and brings a top mentality. I can only say positive things; the group are replying to it," said the Finnish goalkeeper, who is expected to be the No.1 for Les Monégasques again this season.
As Hradecky, it is a difficult start to the season for Monaco, who face a tough run of fixtures in Ligue 1 McDonald's (Marseille, PSG, Strasbourg, and Lens before the international break in September), as well as the two-legged European qualifier.
They will have to do without Matthis Abline, Folarin Balogun, and Ansu Fati, all of whom missed Wednesday's training session and have subsequently not made the trip to Poland.
From 2-0 down to a 3-2 win against Liverpool at Anfield for Monaco 🇲🇨🔥
📸 @AS_Monaco_EN pic.twitter.com/3nedTCzuUx— Ligue 1 English (@Ligue1_ENG) August 9, 2026
Their absences could provide opportunities for youth players. Anis Soubeir, Safouane Benzahra, Aymen Assab, Pape Cabral, and Oumar Konaté are among the academy players to have made the trip.
" The academy players? They have a lot of quality. My job is to keep improving them, to take the responsibility off them; they need to enjoy football to show their quality even more. We have to use the young players a lot, as we are missing a lot of players. I think that they are ready to help the team," said Luís.
The Brazilian faces a familiar balancing act: provide a pathway for youth and improve them, all while ensuring success on the pitch. That task begins on Thursday. Pre-season was a mixed bag, although a win over Liverpool at Anfield was a highlight for Les Monégasques; now the real business gets underway.
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