AS Monaco failed to seize the chance to rise into second position in the Ligue 1 rankings after Les Monégasques were held to a scoreless draw away at Stade de Reims, who remain winless across four consecutive home fixtures (D1).
Monaco appeared the more threatening side early on and commanded possession, while Reims were obligated to sit deep and rely on counterattacks. Opportunities were rare in the initial moments, but Les Monégasques had the better chances to find the net, even if the final pass was missing. Eliesse Ben Seghir and Takumi Minamino failed to exploit promising openings to break the stalemate during the first 30 minutes.
Reims answered through Marshall Munetsi, but the Zimbabwean player missed scoring with a header from close range after a sublime delivery from Oumar Diakité. Munetsi crafted another notable chance near the end of the opening half when assisting Keito Nakamura, but the Japanese forward’s attempt missed wide of the left upright with Philipp Köhn beaten.
The home side approached the second period with a bolder mindset and came extremely close to securing the lead, but Diakité’s ferocious strike ricocheted off the crossbar after a sharp low cross from Junya Ito. That bright start wasn’t maintained through the rest of the half, and it became evident that a substitution might be required to alter the game for either team. Minamino had likely the most promising opportunity of the match in the 76th minute, but he failed to defeat Yehvann Diouf one-on-one and sent his shot wide of the left post.
Despite Monaco’s efforts to secure a late winner, their lack of precision in finishing led both sides to settle for a stalemate that hindered their chances of climbing higher in the standings, with Les Monégasques missing the chance to move into second position. Reims extended their poor streak to just one victory across their previous eight Ligue 1 matches (D3, L4).