Can Anyone Stop Ali Dali When He Plays Like This?

The ball had barely left Ali Dali's boot when the away end behind the goal erupted, a wall of noise rolling down from the stands. He'd drifted in from the left, taken one touch to steady himself and lashed it low past Aboubacar Keita. Marseille's supporters didn't sit down for a good minute. Neither did Dali.

He was everywhere in this one. Two goals, two key passes, five shots, four dribbles completed, and a match rating of 9.1 that made him the obvious pick as the game's outstanding figure. Marseille won 3-2, but the scoreline flatters Monaco, who spent long stretches chasing shadows and finished with ten men after Ali Toibibou was sent off early in the second half.

Monaco had their moments. Hüseyin Yılmaz scored before being replaced late on, Boubacar Fall set one up with three key passes of his own, and Keita made seven clearances. But Marseille's midfield kept turning the screw. Eric Geyer ran 13.3 kilometres, laid on an assist and created six chances; Louis Tourenne added another assist before making way on the hour. Bruno Diana, wasteful with six shots, still got his goal.

Dali's second was the sort that silences a home crowd. Monaco had just begun to believe, the game stretched, and there he was again, arriving in the box at the right moment. "When he's in that mood," one Marseille voice said afterwards, "you just give him the ball and get out of the way."

It's the kind of display that makes Saturday's visit of Paris Saint-Germain feel like a genuine occasion rather than a fixture to survive. Marseille have been building towards something this season. On this evidence, Dali intends to be at the centre of it.

For Monaco, the questions pile up. A red card, a reshuffled back line and a strike force that couldn't quite match Marseille's bite. They'll regroup. But they'll remember the name that did the damage.