Monaco come from behind to claim draw with Dinamo Zagreb in Champions League
The Croatians came into the clash looking to quickly erase their ‘whipping boys’ tag, after being on the receiving end of a 9-2 demolition job by Bayern Munich on matchday one.
That result cost Sergej Jakirovic his job, so it was perhaps unsurprising that his permanent successor Nenad Bjelica opted for a five-man backline in an attempt to stifle Monaco’s attacking prowess.
However, that defensive shape was belied by a fast start from the hosts.
Les Monegasques goalkeeper Philipp Kohn parried away Martin Baturina’s driven set-piece, which was subsequently cleared off the line by Mohammed Salisu.
Bruno Petkovic then saw his speculative bicycle kick sail over the bar from Stefan Ristovski’s enticing cross from the right-hand side.
In contrast to Dinamo's opening day tribulations, Monaco were looking to build on a memorable opening night win over Barcelona.
The Ligue 1 outfit had a chance to break the deadlock in fortuitous circumstances when Maghnes Akliouche's effort rebounded into Takumi Minamino’s path, but Ivan Nevistic was quick off his line to thwart the Japan international.
Back came Dinamo, and it was the home fans that were singing in the rain as the first half came to a close.
Petar Sucic showed brilliant composure to turn inside the box at the end of a blistering counter-attack, dinking the ball over Kohn to give Bjelica’s men a half-time lead.
The hosts appeared to be managing the tricky conditions better than Monaco, who were fortunate not to be 2-0 down shortly after the restart when Petković mistimed his close-range effort from Baturina’s deep corner into the box.
The Split-born midfielder was having an excellent match though, and deservedly added his name to the scoresheet when he weaved his way into a central position just outside the box, before unleashing an unstoppable left-footed strike beyond Kohn.
That wasn’t the end of Monaco’s efforts though, and Adi Hutter’s side crafted a lifeline in the 74th minute, when Salisu headed home from Akliouche's corner.
Ultimately the visitors would preserve their unbeaten start to the season across all competitions after Maxime Bernauer was penalised for a challenge on Folarin Balogun in the box.
Captain Zakaria confidently dispatched the subsequent spot-kick to earn the visitors a point.
Then, a potentially memorable night was dampened further when Lukas Kacavenda was sent off for a second bookable offence, as Dinamo ended the match with 10 men.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Martin Baturina (Dinamo Zagreb)
