Monaco admit the French Cup is not their primary aim this season, but today’s quarter-final tie at home to Lille offers them the possibility of a rapid pick-me-up after their League Cup final loss. The principality club are still looking for a first trophy since 2003 after capitulating in Saturday’s clash with Paris Saint-Germain in Lyon, losing 4-1.
It was a bad start to a huge month for Leonardo Jardim’s side, who face Borussia Dortmund in the quarter-finals of the Champions League and are three points clear of PSG at the top of Ligue 1 with eight games left.
The latter competition is the club’s “number one objective” now, according to their Russian vice-president Vadim Vasilyev. However, a second Cup disappointment in four days would represent a serious setback.
“The League Cup is finished. Now we are going to try to get to the final of the other Cups,” insisted Jardim after losing to PSG. “The defeat will not have an impact on the end of the league season. We are built to try to win every competition.”
Monaco can welcome back key Brazilian midfielder Fabinho after suspension but Jardim is likely to rotate his squad with a league trip to Angers at the weekend the priority. Meanwhile, PSG are now eyeing a third consecutive clean sweep of the domestic honours in France in the wake of their convincing success against Monaco.
Edinson Cavani scored twice to take him to 40 goals for the season and Angel Di Maria produced an outstanding performance as the capital club won the League Cup for the fourth year running. 
Last month’s Champions League debacle in Barcelona showed they are not yet ready for European success but they have now won their last 29 domestic cup ties.
That run will surely be extended when they take on third-tier minnows Avranches in the Normandy city of Caen tomorrow, with coach Unai Emery also prepared to make changes to his team.
In Avranches, the town that overlooks the world-famous Mont Saint-Michel on France’s Channel coast, coach Damien Ott admitted that his side face a huge task. “It is a bit frightening, but we have to get on with it. It is a bit hard to get to sleep after seeing how they played against Monaco,” said Ott, whose team are 13th in the third tier.
Elsewhere, Angers take on Bordeaux in an all top-flight tie and Guingamp, winners in 2009 and 2014, meet fourth-tier minnows Frejus Saint-Raphael in Cannes.

Fixtures
Today: Frejus Saint-Raphael v Guingamp (1600 GMT), Monaco v Lille (1900 GMT)
Tomorrow: Angers v Bordeaux (1630 GMT), Avranches v Paris Saint-Germain (1905 GMT)