Monaco knew that if they wanted to enjoy success under Kovac after two seasons of often dire struggles, they would need to tighten up at the back. Out went Kamil Glik, whose form had declined ever since he played a key role in the principality club’s stunning 2016-17 title success. The Pole left for newly-promoted Italian Serie A side Benevento. And in came Disasi, the 22-year-old being lured from Stade de Reims on a five-year deal for a transfer fee of €13 million plus a further two million in potential bonuses, a record for the selling club.

Disasi had just enjoyed a breakthrough top-flight season at Reims, helping them qualify for Europe. He has fitted seamlessly into the Monaco defence, scoring on his Ligue 1 Uber Eats debut for his new side in a 2-2 draw with…Reims on the opening weekend.

Disasi has rapidly developed a partnership with France Under-21 international Benoît Badiashile and the new signing has only missed two games so far this season, both because of suspension. He has gone on to captain Kovac’s side and also scored the opener in the recent Côte d’Azur derby victory away to OGC Nice. But who exactly is Axel Disasi? Read on…

Back story:

Disasi was born on March 11, 1998, in Gonesse, 30 kilometres north of central Paris in the suburbs of the French capital that are renowned for their rich seam of young footballing talent. He grew up in a family of Congolese origin in nearby Villiers-le-Bel and showed promise with a ball at his feet from an early age.

Disasi was picked up by Paris FC in 2014 and within a matter of months he was moved up to the Under-17 age group and then into the Under-19s, with whom his first match was against Reims.

He was still busy studying at school for his science baccalauréat when he was handed his Ligue 2 debut by Paris FC coach Jean-Luc Vasseur against RC Lens in December 2015. A struggling Paris FC side lost 1-0 and went on to finish bottom that season, but Disasi - already a towering presence at 1.90 metres tall and 86kg - had caught the eye of Reims, who recruited the 18-year-old in the summer of 2016.

Reims were also in Ligue 2, but it took Disasi more than a year to be promoted to their first-team squad by coach David Guion. He broke into the France Under-20 set-up in late 2017 and went on to feature regularly for the Champagne side in the second half of that 2017-18 season as they ran away with the Ligue 2 title.

The following year, with Reims back in the elite, he had to be patient, with Björn Engels developing a strong partnership with Yunis Abdelhamid in central defence. Disasi only played 90 minutes once, but that was in a 3-1 home win over PSG on the final night of the campaign. Engels was sold to Aston Villa in the summer of 2019 and Disasi played all bar one game for Reims in the last, curtailed campaign, drawing admiring glances from clubs around France as well as in the Premier League. His side conceded just 21 goals in their 28 games, fewer than anyone else.

There was interest from Southampton and Wolverhampton Wanderers as well as Stade Rennais FC, while Roma made an offer to try to take Disasi to Italy. But in the end he chose Monaco as the next step in his footballing development.

Style of play:

Disasi is powerful and very tall, at 1.90 metres. Strong in the tackle and with excellent timing, he is a right-sided centre-back who growing up modelled himself on Thiago Silva. There is a touch of Silva’s reading of the game, although Disasi remains raw and will still want to improve with his use of the ball. His height and physicality also make him a weapon at set-pieces, as proven by his header six yards out from a corner in Monaco’s recent win at Nice.

Current campaign:

After a somewhat lengthy summer transfer saga, Disasi signed for Monaco on August 7, just over two weeks before the new campaign got underway. Monaco felt that Disasi would be perfect in the heart of their back line with new coach Kovac looking for a young but physically imposing presence in central defence.

Disasi enjoyed quite a debut, as Monaco fell two goals down at home to his old club Reims. His close-range effort brought Monaco back into the game and they ended up escaping with a 2-2 draw.

The 22-year-old started 10 of his new team’s first 12 matches, all of them alongside Badiashile in central defence. The only games he missed came as he served a suspension after being sent off in a 3-2 home win over RC Strasbourg Alsace in late September. Without him, Monaco lost 1-0 at Stade Brestois 29 and drew 1-1 at home to Montpellier Hérault SC. Kovac’s side have won seven of the 10 games in which he has featured, including against PSG.

What you didn’t know:

Before joining Paris FC, Disasi had an unsuccessful trial with Paris Saint-Germain, depriving him of the chance to play alongside his idol Thiago Silva. “He has come a long way, practically from nowhere,” the Paris FC Academy director and Under-19 team coach, Mathieu Lacan, told Le Parisien in December 2015. “But his story shows that even if we don’t have an officially authorised academy, ours still constitutes somewhere that can offer a second chance to youngsters from the Île-de-France.

International career:

Disasi has represented France at Under-20 level, playing for them at the Toulon Tournament in 2018. He is also eligible for the Democratic Republic of Congo and was pre-selected in their squad for a pair of Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers earlier this year. However, that came just before the coronavirus pandemic forced football to shut down and he has not yet been capped by either country at full international level.

What he said:

“When training is finished I go straight to class. When I’m there I don’t behave like I’m someone special, I’m just Axel, a final year student, not a Ligue 2 player. It’s not easy going from one thing to the other though, and sometimes I fall asleep with my head in my exercise books. But I won’t give up on my bac.”

On breaking into the Paris FC team as a 17-year-old while also studying for his science baccalauréat.

“This is a great opportunity for me to demonstrate my qualities at the highest level and to continue my progress at a club with big ambitions.”

On signing for Monaco.

“We need to continue like this. The season is still very long but I think it augurs well for what comes next. There are quite a few teams around us, like Marseille, Lille and Lyon, who also have great squads. We need to stay in the pack, keep getting good results and we will see where we are at the end of the season. We are competitors and of course we want to finish high up.”

On Monaco’s season so far.

What they said:

“In his very first match for us, he impressed me with his serenity, the way in which he was calm but also so powerful. I could see he had huge potential. Besides his athletic qualities he was very mature for his age.”

Mathieu Lacan, Disasi’s coach with Paris FC’s Under-19 side.

“In our first season in Ligue 1 he was behind Engels and Abdelhamid in the pecking order. He had to be patient. There was competition for places but he observed things, worked hard and learned. Despite his physique he is also very good at bringing the ball out.”

David Guion, Disasi’s coach at Reims.

“Axel is an excellent young player who is developing and working very hard. He is also a strong man with lots of character. He has many leadership qualities. I know there are lots of very good players in his position in France, but I think he is the future of the national team.”

Monaco coach Niko Kovac explains why he decided to make Disasi his vice-captain.

>> PROFILE: Axel Disasi