Folarin Balogun turns master creator as USMNT striker provides two crucial assists to help 10-man Monaco see off Rennes

After seeing a header sail over the bar, Balogun had his best chance late in the first half when a pass sent him in behind the Rennes defence, but his shot was a tame one and easily saved by goalkeeper Steve Mandanda.

Balogun then managed to help Monaco take the lead early in the second half when he was found in the Rennes box and unselfishly squared to the incoming Vanderson for the full-back to fire in with the aid of a deflection.

Monaco were under pressure for the final 15 minutes, when Vanderson was sent off for a second yellow card, but Balogun helped them secure the three points late on when his pass sent Youssouf Fofana through to fire in the second goal. Unfortunately for Fofana, he ended up making a silly challenge from behind in the box to concede a late penalty, allowing Rennes to pull a goal back in the 90th minute.

The win sees Monaco jump into second place in Ligue 1, leapfrogging Nice ahead of their match against Reims on Sunday. Having recorded two straight wins in the French top-flight, that will come as a big boost to Monaco after a somewhat inconsistent period - they had won two and lost two of the previous five matches heading into the trip to Rennes and had been thumped 5-2 by PSG in November.

While he has failed to score in his last two games for Monaco, United States boss Gregg Berhalter will be pleased to see Balogun take the sensible route and set up a team-mate in a better scoring position rather than shoot and perhaps waste the chance. His pass through to Fofana was vital, too, given Rennes went on to score and pull a goal back.

The striker had three shots overall in Rennes, hitting the target once, but he will not be concerned as he linked up well with his team-mates and still managed to play a big role in the game's decisive move. More important performances like this will help keep him in with a chance of getting into the starting XI when the USMNT meet Jamaica in the CONCACAF Nations League semi-finals in March next year.

Folarin Balogun (8/10):

His finishing left a lot to be desired but Balogun was heavily involved as the visitors dominated possession and enjoyed more chances than Rennes. He combined well with Vanderson to create the first goal and helped spur on Monaco's attacks with some good passes in and around the Rennes box, culminating in a fine ball through for Fofana to wrap up the points.

Balogun will hope to be among the goals as Monaco take on Ligue 1's bottom team Lyon next week. Adi Hutter's team will be confident of getting three points from the home game against the struggling team and maintain the pressure on leaders Paris Saint-Germain.