Mason Greenwood's decisive goal in the 82nd minute secured a crucial 1-0 victory for Marseille against Monaco at the Orange Velodrome. This win propelled Marseille back into the Champions League spots in Ligue 1. The match reached its climax when Greenwood scored shortly after Folarin Balogun's attempt was disallowed for offside.
Monaco struggled to break through Marseille's defence, especially in the first half. They did have a few chances, with Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg clearing Balogun's shot off the line and Geronimo Rulli comfortably saving Aleksandr Golovin's curling effort. Despite these attempts, Monaco couldn't find the back of the net.
Playing at home, Marseille capitalised on their familiar surroundings to secure this vital win. They had
not won in their previous two league matches and needed this victory to stay competitive. Under Roberto De Zerbi, they have scored 56 league goals at home in 2025, only surpassed by their tallies in 1971 and 1948.
In the second half, Lamine Camara thought he had put Monaco ahead six minutes after the restart. However, his goal was ruled out due to an offside call against Balogun earlier in the play. This decision kept the score level until Greenwood's late intervention.
Greenwood was instrumental for Marseille, leading his team with seven shots and creating four chances. He also made eight touches inside Monaco's box and completed 26 passes in their final third. His performance was pivotal in securing all three points for his team.
The match saw another disallowed goal for Monaco when Balogun appeared to score after receiving a pass from Maghnes Akliouche. However, VAR confirmed he was offside, nullifying what could have been a lead for Monaco just before Greenwood's winner.
π©πππ§π’π₯π¬ ππ’π₯ π§ππ π’ππ¬π π£πππ‘π¦! GREENWOOD'S WINNER DELIVERS THE THREE POINTS! #OMASM | -|pic.twitter.com/SNLQo4pKTR
- Olympique de Marseille (@OM_English) December 14, 2025
Marseille almost took an early lead when Emerson's cross found Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang within five minutes of kick-off. However, Lukas Hradecky made a remarkable save to deny him at close range. This set the tone for a tightly contested match where both teams had opportunities but struggled to convert them into goals.
As full-time approached, Monaco nearly equalised when substitute Mika Biereth rounded Rulli but saw his shot blocked heroically by Nayef Aguerd on the line. This defensive effort ensured that Marseille maintained their slender advantage until the final whistle.
The game statistics reflected an evenly matched contest with both teams having an expected goals (xG) total close to each otherβMarseille at 1.86 and Monaco at 2.12 from their respective attempts on goal.
