Advertisement
David Vincent
From Paris With Love

It's only early November but the French league already appears to be a one-horse race

Monaco are doing their best to keep in touch but Paris Saint-Germain seem very comfortable at the summit.

MONACO ARE GAMELY putting up a good fight but Paris Saint-Germain are four points clear at the top of the Ligue 1 standings and, despite the fact that it’s only early November, seem pretty comfortable too.

On Saturday, both teams won big.

Even without Neymar, PSG could still count on Kylian Mbappe and the rest of their glittering support cast.

The youngster scored a hat-trick as his side racked up five against Angers – Julian Draxler and the league’s top-scorer, Edinson Cavani, adding the other goals.

That’s now 13 in just 11 appearances this season for the Uruguayan, who certainly doesn’t seem too affected by the club’s high-profile summer acquisitions.

Second-placed Monaco went one better and put a staggering six past Guingamp.

They were without Falcao but that had little impact as Adama Traore and Guido Carrillo both scored twice while Fabinho tucked away a penalty.

22-year-old Balde Keita, signed from Lazio for €30m in the summer and who has hit the ground running as the team try to fill the Mbappe-sized hole in their starting XI, found the net for third successive game.

Given they lost so many crucial players in the off-season, the fact that Monaco are still keeping tabs with PSG is quite remarkable.

Still, it seems the four-point difference will inevitably grow larger.

From 12 games, PSG have managed 39 goals and leaked just eight. They’re still unbeaten and from their last three fixtures alone, they’ve scored 13 and conceded none.

As a result, they’ve also got a nine-goal advantage on Monaco, who have already lost two games, including a 4-0 thumping in Nice.

As much as things seem competitive currently, you get the impression that PSG still have more gears to push through.

Subscribe to The42 podcasts here:

Arjen Robben makes history with stunning goal as Bayern boss Dortmund in derby

Chelsea team-mates begged Morata not to follow Torres and Falcao by taking ‘cursed’ 9 shirt

Your Voice
Readers Comments
8
This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic. Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy here before taking part.
Leave a Comment
    Submit a report
    Please help us understand how this comment violates our community guidelines.
    Thank you for the feedback
    Your feedback has been sent to our team for review.

    Leave a commentcancel