Monaco coach Thierry Henry is set to name four teenagers at Atlético Madrid in the Champions League on Wednesday evening.
UEFA Champions League Group A
Wanda Metropolitano, Madrid
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Hit by an injury list that contains 12 names and already knocked out of the Champions League, Henry is set to give youth its head at the Wanda Metropolitano. Monaco have to beat the reigning Europa League champions to stand any chance of pipping Brugge to third position and a Europa League berth.
Han-Noah Massengo, 17, Benoît Badiashile, 17, Amilcar Silva, 19, and Moussa Sylla, 18, are all poised to begin the game as the Ligue 1 Conforama strugglers look to build on their win at Caen at the weekend, Henry’s first victory as boss of the Principality club.
Henry commented: “As coaches we have no issues with starting the youngsters. The young players have stood up to be counted for a while now. We’re going to be handing first matches to certain players and it’s not the ideal time to it, but you’ve got to start somewhere in football and you’ve got to enjoy it. They saw Griezmann lift the World Cup and now they’re going to play against him. It’s no longer a dream, it’s reality.”
Badiashile has started the last two Monaco games and fared far better in the 1-0 success at Caen, secured by a great Radamel Falcao free-kick, than he did in the 4-0 home reverse to Paris Saint-Germain. Henry commented: “Badiashile played a great game against Caen at the heart of the defence. He was actually also very good against PSG even if we conceded four goals.”
Falcao scored 52 goals in 68 matches for Atlético between 2011 and 2013 before joining Monaco and the Colombian hotshot will be aiming to break his Champions League duck for the season. Falcao said: “It’s always good to be able to return to Atlético’s stadium, it’s been a while since I’ve done so. I’ll always have the moments and memories from here. Meeting the fans and the club again will bring lots of emotions. Since the start of the season, we haven’t had all our players available. The coach has had to rely on young players and academy players. Our role as more experienced players is to trust in them so that they can give 100% for the team.”
Probable Teams:
Atlético Madrid: Oblak; Arias, Savic, Hernandez, Filipe Luis; Koke, Rodri, Partey, Vitolo; Kalinic, Griezmann
Monaco: Benaglio; Henrichs, Jemerson, Raggi, Badiashile, Silva; Tielemans, Massengo, Aït-Bennasser, Falcao, Sylla
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