Le Mans's 90th-minute leveller came from far better chances

Le Mans drew 1-1 with Monaco after Erwan Colas equalised in the 90th minute, having created the far stronger chances.

Erwan Colas struck in the 90th minute to rescue a 1-1 draw for Le Mans against Monaco, and the chances behind that equaliser tell a different story from the scoreline. Le Mans had less of the ball, but they were the side forcing the action in front of goal. Monaco had gone ahead through Mamadou Coulibaly in the 40th minute, and for most of the second half they looked the more settled side without quite making it count.

Monaco had 52% of the ball, which is almost exactly their usual share away from home. Their passing was steady, with 458 attempts, but the passes did not turn into much in the penalty area. Monaco managed only five shots, against a away average of 12 for the season, and the league average sits at 12.8 shots per side. Passing well and creating chances are not the same thing, and this was a night where the two parted company.

Le Mans, by contrast, produced their most dangerous attacking display in a while. They took 18 shots, 12 of them from inside the box, and five of those tests were on target. Expected goals, a measure that adds up the quality of each chance on a scale from zero to one, came to 1.56. That is comfortably above their usual home figure of 1.27, and it suggests the equaliser was earned rather than lucky. Their possession of 48% was also a touch above their normal home share of 46%.

Monaco's goalkeeper, L. Hrádecký, was the busier of the two keepers in the sense that matters most: he made four saves, while the Le Mans keeper made two. That number says a good deal about where the danger came from. Monaco's own chances were thin, with only two shots from inside the box and an expected goals figure of 0.83. That is below their away average of 1.23, and well under the league average of 1.41. For a side in their position, that gap between possession and quality is the part that will stick.

The result leaves Le Mans on a point from a match they had every reason to lose on the balance of possession. Their goal came late, but the chances that produced it were not a late phenomenon, since they had been building pressure for much of the match. Monaco, who had led at half-time after a single goal, are now seventh in the table, while Le Mans sit 17th. A point is not a victory, but it is hard to see it as a poor return for a side that was out-passed.

To finish the picture, Le Mans scored one goal, which is just below their normal home return of 1.2 per match. They conceded one too, which is half a goal better than their usual figure of two per home game. Neither of those numbers is unusual on its own. What was unusual was how many chances Le Mans created while the scoreboard showed them behind until the final minutes.

Player of the matchE. Colas1 goal8.1

M. Coulibaly1 goal7.5

E. Dier1 chance created7.2

L. Hrádecký4 saves7.2