Super Fab’s absence a big blow to Monaco’s hopes
paris — The last time Fabinho did not play for Monaco, the French league leaders were thrashed by Paris Saint-Germain 4-1 in the League Cup final this month.
The midfielder won’t be playing on Wednesday either, when Monaco hosts Borussia Dortmund in their Champions League quarterfinal. Monaco lead 3-2 from the first leg in Germany, but their chances of advancing without Fabinho, who is serving a suspension, have dropped. He’s that important. With him, Monaco have lost just once in 2017 and won 75 percent of their matches in all competitions this season.
His partnership with Tiemoue Bakayoko in midfield has been key as Monaco became Europe’s most efficient attacking team. A technically gifted holding midfielder who started at right back, Fabinho has also been contributing offensively, scoring 10 goals in 46 appearances.
“When he is not there, it makes a huge difference,” said former Nice coach Eric Roy, now a TV pundit.
“In Monaco, they sometimes play with four attacking players at the same time. They need two midfielders covering a lot of ground. As soon as there is one missing, the team becomes a bit unbalanced.”
Against Dortmund, Fabinho is likely to be replaced by Joao Moutinho, who partnered Bakayoko in that big loss to PSG. Defender Djibril Sidibe is still out after an appendicitis operation while left back Benjamin Mendy has recovered from injury.
In addition to Fabinho’s suspension, fatigue could also be a crucial factor against Dortmund. Monaco, who progressed to the Champions League quarterfinals after starting their campaign in the third qualifying room, have already played 53 times this season. —