Delhi,30 March (H.S.): Monaco climbed to second place in Ligue 1 following a 2-1 comeback win against Nice in the Derby de la Côte d’Azur at Stade Louis II, denying Nice their first league double in this matchup since the 2004/05 season.

The match began with a golden opportunity for Monaco after Nice's Benjamin Santamaria’s poor pass led to a penalty when he fouled Breel Embolo. However, Mika Biereth's penalty was saved by Marcin Bułka. Shortly after, Takumi Minamino struck the crossbar, while Caio Henrique thwarted Evann Guessand's attempts for Nice.

Nice capitalized on Monaco's missed chances with Jeremie Boga heading in Jonathan Clauss' cross, making it 1-0. Despite this, Monaco head coach Adi Hutter kept the same team post-break, which paid off in the 55th minute when Lamine Camara’s pass found Maghnes Akliouche, whose flick set up Biereth for the equalizer, marking his 12th Ligue 1 goal in 10 games.

Akliouche almost put Monaco ahead shortly after, but was thwarted by Bulka again. A VAR decision by referee Jerome Brisard not to award a penalty for Dante’s foul on Embolo stirred controversy.

Nonetheless, Embolo scored the winner in the 73rd minute after a defensive slip by Dante. Following Dante's red card in stoppage time, Monaco faces Brest next Saturday, aiming to build on their recent form, while Nice seeks to end their three-match winless streak against Nantes.

Flashscore Man of the Match: Denis Zakaria (Monaco).

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar