PROFILE | Is Aleksandr Golovin’s influence waning at Monaco? | OneFootball

The discourse surrounding Aleksandr Golovin has changed in recent years, and along with it, expectations. Having snatched him from under Chelsea’s noses in 2018, Golovin was a marquee signing that had failed to produce a return on investment. That was until recently at least.

Through various injuries, including adductor pain, thigh problems, hamstring injuries, hip injuries, and ankle sprains, Golovin missed vast swathes of his early seasons with the Principality club. It was only in the 2022/23 season that those issues came to an abrupt end. The arrival of now-former Monaco manager Philippe Clement, who in tandem with now-former performance director James Bunce, signalled a change. The duo worked together to resolve the recurring injury problems that had dogged Golovin’s Monaco career.

Since the start of last season, the Russia international has missed just nine games due to injury. With his glass frame fixed, Golovin found rhythm and form, enjoying his most prolific Ligue 1 campaign (eight goals) in the 2022/23 season. He followed that up with six goals and six assists last season, whilst ranking highly in progressive passing metrics (second-most through balls in Ligue 1, second-most passes into the box, and eighth-highest in key passes). At times, he also dropped deeper into a midfield pivot. It is a new role, a role that he is fully capable of fulfilling against lower-level opposition in particular, and one that he has also had to fulfil already this season.

Golovin’s shared set-piece duties have an impac

Whilst Golovin has added versatility to his game, he has so far lacked creativity this season. By mid-November, he was yet to register a single goal contribution in any competition (he has since gone on to score twice in Ligue 1 and register an assist in the Champions League), alluding to a drop in form. Whilst that may be true – and stats show it – there are mitigating circumstances. Adi Hutter has implemented a heavy rotation policy, decreasing minutes for all players. Last season, Golovin was on set-piece duties, a valuable source of goals for Monaco, but with Caio Henrique returning from injury and dead-ball specialist Lamine Camara arriving, those duties are now shared.

That has had an effect on Golovin’s output but, along with Takumi Minamino, Maghnes Akliouche, and Eliesse Ben Seghir, he continues to influence games. Monaco will be hoping that that remains the case and that, in time, the goals and assists flow once more. A key player despite the emergence of Akliouche and Ben Seghir, Golovin adds experience that may prove invaluable as the season progresses.

GFFN | Luke Entwistle