Monaco chasing Ligue 1 title with Berbatov back among goals
Published:Radamel Falcao may have been ruled out for the remainder of the season through injury but with his newly-recruited replacement Dimitar Berbatov already finding the net it could be a case of “the King is Dead, Long Live the King!” – particularly if Monaco can claim the Ligue 1 crown this term.
Available at odds of 13/2 with Ladbrokes to do just that, the Principality club currently sit some five points behind fellow big-spenders PSG in the French top flight standings.
But with the Parisiens back in Champions League action this month and facing a tricky two-leg tie against Bundesliga high-flyers Bayer Leverkusen, there’s a real opportunity for Monaco, who are not involved in European competition, to make up the ground.
They will certainly have been buoyed by a recent 1-1 draw with the champions, as well as the successful recruitment of a makeshift replacement for Falcao in the form of Berbatov.
He may play the game somewhat differently to the pacey former Porto man, but the Bulgarian is a skilful, if slightly languid, operator with the pedigree and composure in front of goal to help fire the club to the title, as he previously did with Manchester United.
The good news for fans of the Principality club and those backing the newly-promoted team to snatch the title from their Paris rivals is that he appears to have already shaken off the malaise that came to define his spell with Premier League strugglers Fulham.
Five goals in 18 games for the Cottagers this season was a far from impressive tally, but after finding the net in the club’s 1-0 win over Nice in the cup, this could be the start of a positive period for the forward who has averaged roughly around a goal every two games at each of his previous club sides.
Get Berbatov firing and the five-point margin between first and second could soon evaporate, particularly as PSG have struggled for form of late in the league, dropping points in two of their last three fixtures in the division.
A Premier League winner in 2011, Berba should be backed to add a Ligue 1 winner’s medal to his current collection come the end of the season.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.
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