Here’s a tip for all you defenders out there: If you are called for a foul just outside your box and want to fall to the ground holding your face in disbelief, at least do it in front of the ball so the opponents can’t punish you like in this Radamel Falcao goal vs Nice on Tuesday.
Monaco immediately put the ball back into play after the foul on the edge of the box — too quickly for the cameramen — and Nice was caught completely unawares. Before they knew what hit them, Falcao was tapping in a blocked shot for an equalizer in the 92nd minute of their Ligue 1 clash.
The late goal meant Monaco went up to 43 points, one more than Lyon, which has a game in hand, though Marseille leaped a point ahead of Monaco into second place. Marseille, which is nine points back of PSG, beat Strasbourg 2-0 on Tuesday thanks to a bit of filth from Dimitri Payet.
The Falcao goal vs Nice also canceled out a brace from Mario Balotelli. The Italian striker scored twice in the second half to propel Nice into the lead from a halftime deficit.
Balotelli’s exploits appeared to give Nice a justified advantage after Monaco went ahead 1-0 on a controversial goal. Adama Diakhaby opened the scoring with a volley after the ball hit at least one, maybe two Monaco hands in the immediate buildup.
It wasn’t Abdoulaye Doucouré bad, but it looked pretty clear there was an infraction.
Nonetheless, all four goals stood, with the Falcao goal vs Nice being the difference between a loss and a point for Monaco.