Monaco Through, Lille Out, Paris Stumble
AS Monaco rescued France’s Europa League campaign, while LOSC Lille fell and Paris Saint-Germain lost ground in the Conference League.
France expected a rescue mission in Europe; AS Monaco supplied one, LOSC Lille did not, and Paris Saint-Germain found that a narrow lead in the standings can be a rather delicate possession.
Monaco advanced from their UEFA Europa League quarter-final, overturning their first-leg deficit to go through 3-2 on aggregate. Their reward is another French-English meeting: Monaco will face Plymouth Argyle on 1 May. Lille, by contrast, lost 2-1 at Plymouth and went out 3-1 on aggregate. The English club has now removed one French side and will meet another. The draw, as ever, has a sense of humour.
Monaco’s passage also gives Hüseyin Yılmaz an unusually personal route into the next tie. No need to embroider the subtext. It arrived fully dressed.
Paris lost 2-0 to Wolverhampton Wanderers on Thursday in the UEFA Europa Conference League. The defeat leaves PSG third in the league phase on 15 points after six matches, behind Leganés and Wolves, both on 16, and one point ahead of FC St. Gallen 1879.
The loss also reverses the mood of last week’s preview, which described the door as open. It remains open, technically; football is generous with such technicalities. France’s European week ends with Monaco through, Lille gone and PSG needing a better answer next time. For the country’s continental hopes, one club has carried the flag onward. The other two have left it in rather different condition.