How and Where to Watch: Monaco vs. Lens in the Ligue 1 on beIN SPORTS
Monaco looks for top-spot move against a Lens side in turmoil
After being the success story of last season in France with a second-place finish in Ligue 1 and a Coupe de France victory, Lens are making headlines of the wrong kind at the start of the new campaign.
After the departure of Pierre Sage to Crystal Palace, Lens brought in German coach, Dino Toppmöller, who immediately delivered a victory in the Trophée des Champions over PSG and an opening win in the Champions League against Slavia Prague. However, matters appear to have soured very quickly at Lens with Toppmöller leaving the club after just four Ligue 1 games.
Lens’s managing director, Benjamin Parrot, spoke of an institutional disconnect with the German at the club as the reason for the shock departure. Toppmöller's assistant, Yannick Cahuzac, takes over for Friday's massive Monaco match, a move that will cost the club $25k in fines for each game, as the former Lens player doesn't have the prerequisite coaching qualifications.
This disruption is in stark contrast to Monaco, which is in fine form already under new manager, Filipe Luís with 10 points from 12 (including a win over PSG). However, the atmosphere has been soured a little with German striker Paris Brunner, facing a suspension after making an aggressive gesture to Strasbourg supporters in last week's draw.
A win will lift Monaco to the top of the standings, a likely prospect unless Lens are able to move on from a wild week of off the field drama.
Friday Sept 18th
2:35PM ET / 11:35AM PT
Monaco vs. Lens - live on beIN SPORTS
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