Monaco loanee Chrislain Matsima to return from Lorient | OneFootball

According to a report from L’Équipe, 20-year-old centre-back Chrislain Matsima will end his loan spell at FC Lorient to rejoin AS Monaco this January. The young Frenchman was originally on loan with Les Merlus until summer of 2023, but Les Monégasques have recalled him in order to bolster their defence.

Monaco hold the current season’s record for the most points dropped from a winning position, having conceded 17 points after taking the lead during this campaign. Matsima’s return to the Principality should help to plug the leaks at the back, especially given the departure of Benoît Badiashile to Chelsea earlier in the window. A return to Monaco should also grant him more playing time, as he was playing third-best to the defensive partnership of Julien Laporte and Montassar Talbi in Brittany.

Le Rocher are in fourth place after 20 games – but those 17 points dropped would have them in first place, so their defence is certainly the area in most need of improvement. Matsima has six clean sheets across all of his 22 appearances in Ligue 1 since his debut in the competition; a record that Monaco will surely wish to continue in their quest to reach the European qualification places.

GFFN | Brendan Cox