AS Monaco - from near-heroes to near-zeroes

[MC Prussian]

Anyone remember these?

I've been wondering for a while now what has happened to the former "French" powerhouse located in the Fontvieille area of Monaco, a club that has won the French Championship 7 times in the past.

Checked the Ligue 2 tables a while ago and was very surprised and baffled to see the team slumping at the bottom.

Here's a great article about their downslide in recent years:

From Champions League finalists to bottom of Ligue 2 in seven years – the dramatic decline of Monaco, the club that launched greats like Thierry Henry & George Weah

The Stade Louis II side have seen their strength disintegrate, and all that remains is the legacy of a once-great club, who boast seven French titles amongst their honours

Dec 6, 2011 9:00:00 AM

COMMENT

By Robin Bairner | French Football Editor

On May 26, 2004, Ludovic Giuly was just 90 minutes away from becoming a Champions League winner as Monaco faced Porto at the Arena AufSchalke in Gelsenkirchen. Goals from Carlos Alberto, Deco and Dmitri Alenichev would deny the right-winger his dream, however, as Jose Mourinho’s side eased to a 3-0 victory in the final.

Less than a decade on, the 35-year-old Giuly has enjoyed a fruitful career with Barcelona, Roma and Paris Saint-Germain, and now finds himself back in the principality earning a living with the side he helped to the brink of greatness.

The scene is very different, though. The Stade Louis II reverberating with the joyous home crowd celebrating his brace as Monaco historically turned around a 4-2 quarter-final first-leg deficit against Real Madrid is just a happy memory; instead, the poorly supported Mediterranean outfit are finding life as rocky as the surrounding landscape the principality clings to.

Friday evening saw les Rouge et Blanc at home against Metz in Ligue 2, but they fell further behind at the bottom of the league after slumping to a 2-0 defeat. So low have Monaco sunk, even Arles-Avignon – the side who would have been Ligue 1’s worst ever had it not been for a late rally last term – boast three more points than they do.

The situation is, quite frankly, a shambles.

Monaco’s decline can be charted from that fateful evening in Germany – undoubtedly the peak of their prowess – but it has accelerated over the course of the last 18 months. Guy Lacombe’s tenure really sparked the slump in fortunes of the seven-time French champions, while the decision to appoint Laurent Banide as his successor was equally ill-judged.

A dreadfully, dour, defensive coach, Banide had actually manoeuvred his side into a position of potential salvation towards the end of last term, but after taking a 1-0 advantage at home against Racing Club de Lens, his side, instead of going for the jugular, sat back and attempted to protect their lead. Against opponents also battling the drop, this proved to be a poor decision as Raphael Varane scored a stoppage-time leveller – the only goal he would score at senior level for his formative club before moving to Real Madrid in the summer - that effectively sealed Monaco’s relegation.

Over the summer, Monaco undertook what appeared to be a successful recruitment program. Veteran striker Thorstein Helstad, prolific in the previous campaign with Le Mans, was added along with familiar and experienced Ligue 1 faces such as Stephane Dumont, a bit-part player as Lille won the title last season and the cunning Marama Vahirua. Most notably, Giuly rejoined as a free agent.

But it quickly became clear that Banide, who had survived the club’s relegation, was not leading the side in the right direction. Following an embarrassing 3-1 home defeat by Angers, he was jettisoned, and former striker Marco Simone placed in charge.

The Italian coaching rookie seemed to have an immediate impact, as Monaco earned a creditable draw in Bastia and muddled their way past Arles 1-0 at home, yet results have not followed thereafter, and indeed that success in September remains their sole league win this term.

Injury problems have crippled the first team at times, with Giuly missing the best part of two months as a glut of starting XI regulars dropped out, and since the start of November there have been hints of improvement, with a 5-0 Coupe de France success against amateurs Ales a fortnight ago seemingly acting as a staging post to work from. The loss against Metz, however, suggests this was another false dawn.

In the longer term, Monaco’s future is less secure, as the paper-thin first-team squad is being supported by the club’s youth academy products. A sharp drop in revenue has resulted from the club’s demotion, and Prince Albert, an active supporter of the club, is encouraging outside investment in his team.

Rumours suggest the saviour could come in the form of Russian billionaire Dmitry Rybolovlev, who is a long-time resident of the principality. The 93rd richest man in the world could, according to L’Equipe, invest a massive €200 million back into the team, as well as making organisational changes, such as bringing World Cup winner and former Monaco star Youri Djorkaeff back to the club in a role of special advisor.

A tiny colony with a population of less than 40,000, the principality’s main football club would appear to have little right to compete with the big boys of the European game – and they are, in truth, unlikely to again as they did in 2004 – but the sheer glitz and glamour of the surroundings may yet breathe life into a team that initially thrived because of the riches.

However, Monaco are heading for footballing oblivion as things stand, with the lower reaches of the French game notoriously difficult to negotiate. If they cannot kick clear of relegation this term, don’t expect to see the club that launched Thierry Henry, David Trezeguet, Emmanuel Adebayor, Giuly and many more stars back amongst France’s best for many years to come.

http://www.goal.com/...m-of-ligue-2-in

[Trav Le Bleu]

That's kind of sad, but the mighty fall. Not so long ago Leeds were English Champions and then slid into the 3rd tier.

Why can't this happen to Man U?

[21st Century Fox]

They need to get this man out of retirement...

91 apps 51 goals

[Bob Farley]

Madness

[Guest Bilo]

Their average home attendance so far this season has been 4500 apparently.

They have pretty much completely collapsed over the past few years and have a tiny fanbase considering their history.