Monaco to sack Portuguese coach Jardim - report

Leonardo Jardim has paid the price for Monaco’s disastrous start to the season, with the former Sporting manager to be sacked after a little over four years at the Stade Louis II according to reports in France.

Monaco sit in 18th place in Ligue 1 and are on a run of ten matches without a win. Jardim’s side lost 2-1 at home to Rennes on Sunday evening, making it four defeats in a row, during which time Les Monégasques have scored just once.

It is a far cry from the lofty heights achieved by the Portuguese boss during the 2016-7 season, when Monaco, with João Moutinho and Bernardo Silva in the side, drew praise from across the footballing world as they stormed to the French Ligue 1 title, scoring a remarkable 107 goals and beating perennial champions Paris Saint-German by 8 points at the top of the standings.

Since then, Jardim has had to cope with wholesale changed to his squad. Key man Bernardo Silva was among those who quickly departed, to Manchester City, but Monaco also lost stars such as Kylian Mbappe, Tiemoue Bakayoko and Benjamin Mendy following their title triumph. It was a similar story this summer, with Moutinho, Fabinho and Thomas Lemar among the players leaving the club.

While Jardim was able to cope with the changes to his team last season, finishing runners-up to Paris Saint-Germain, this term has been a different story. Although Monaco started the campaign with a 3-1 victory at Nantes, the win remains their only three points of the season so far, and results have plummeted to an extent that, according to L’Equipe, the club have felt obliged to act.

Speaking after the weekend defeat, Jardim said he had been trying everything to change the team’s fortunes.  “I decided to make a big turnover in the last few games, even changing the system,” he said. “It’s true that we’re taking goals, but if we look at previous seasons it was already the case. We were more realistic.

“I question myself, I know that I am also responsible for this bad moment. It’s not that I’m going to throw in the towel, I give the best every day. My case is not the most important one, but I must stay focused on the club. Even though players may be in trouble, everyone is questioning themselves to raise their heads. “

Similar reports last week relating to José Mourinho at Manchester United proved premature, but Jardim is expected to receive his marching orders over the next few days. Having been linked with a host of vacancies across the continent over recent years, it is unlikely the Portuguese will be out of work for long.

Article update

On Thursday 11 October the official announcement was made that Monaco and Leonardo Jardim had parted company. It was an "amicable divorce" with both parties agreeing it was the best course of action, and the French club expressing their gratitude for the work done by the Portuguese coach.

By Sean Gillen