Monaco – Istres 10.18.2012

Monaco is probably the best team in League 2. They are well organized club with big tradition and it is clear it will be a miracle if Monaco failed to qualify in the first division.

The Russian owner bring good and experienced coach. Claudio Ranieri is a coach with rich portfolio. He was leading teams like Chelsea, Valencia, Roma, Juventus, Inter etc. He has a good and big roster. Just for Your information, Ranieri has used 17 players in the first two matches.

In the first round Monaco completely outplayed Tours and won 4:0. All four goals were scored in the first half. I am sure the result could be even higher if Ranieri insisted. However, he want to keep the strength for the following fixtures. In the second round Monaco played 0:0 against Laval. Having on mind the draw was obtained away from home, it is not a bad result and Ranieri could be satisfied. For this match he has almost all players available. I wrote almost as two players are rated as doubtful – Edgar Salli and Layvin Kurzawa are injured.

Istres also started good and they are sharing the third position with Monaco, Caen and Arles. All four teams have 4 points after two matches. Istres played draw with Nantes in the opening round and won against Ajaccio in the second round. The team is handicapped as Ibrahima Ba is suspended.

I believe Monaco will win here. Even both teams started very good, I am sure the quality is on Monaco side. The home advantage is also an important factor, Monaco fans will strongly support their players. Finally, Monaco have an excellent record against Istres in the recent years. Both teams have met four times and all matches finished with Monaco victory and I expect another victory for Monaco.