'That surprised us' - Monaco forward Ilenikhena praises performance of Union Saint-Jean goalkeeper

Monaco's Nigerian-born forward George Ilenikhena was impressed by the performance of L'Union Saint-Jean FC goalkeeper, Fawzi Rabyi during Sunday's Coupe de France clash at the Stadium de Toulouse.

Despite what the scoreline suggests, the game was far from straightforward for the Principality side.

Before the break, Takumi Minamino won a penalty but Breel Embolo was denied by the Union Saint-Jean goalkeeper.

Eliesse Ben Seghir, Vanderson and Jordan Teze found the net to give the visitors a three-goal lead, before Benjamin Tournier reduced the defiict.

After coming off the bench to replace Embolo in the 63rd minute, Ilenikhena faced the goalkeeper in the 72nd minute and, a minute later, saw his effort hit the woodwork.

In stoppage time, the Monaco number 19 was finally rewarded for his efforts, calmly finishing from close range to round off the scoring.

Speaking to Monaco's official website, Ilenikhena said: "The goalkeeper made some great saves, he stopped two penalties, that’s huge! 

"I also had a chance that he turned away. He had a great game, he’s a good goalkeeper. But the players also managed to get the ball out well at times, that surprised us. 

"They’re a good team, who knew how to play with the ball."

AS Monaco will do battle with another Ligue 1 team, Stade de Reims in the next round of the Coupe de France.

Ilenikhena, a summer signing from Royal Antwerp, has tallied five goal involvements in twenty-two appearances across all competitions so far this season.

Ifeanyi Emmanuel

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