Despite Usain Bolt taking to the pitch just before kick-off, the game started at a snail’s pace, though Maghnes Akliouche went close to opening the scoring with an acrobatic effort.
Lukas Hradecky then made himself big to deny an enterprising Hamed Traorè from a tight angle, before Gerónimo Rulli had to rush out to prevent Akliouche from turning Thilo Kehrer’s long ball into the opener.
Another save from Hradecky to stop Igor Paixao one-on-one kept things level at the break, which allowed Monaco to regroup and go into the second half as an improved side.
They started to pressure the Marseille goal, and got their reward just before the hour mark when Jordan Teze lifted a delivery into the area for Aleksandr Golovin to rise and poke into the top corner on the volley.
Marseille were determined to respond to that, and were led by their skipper, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, whose powerful shot was batted away by Hradecky.
Monaco continued to protect their lead by playing on the counter and relied on their goalkeeper once more when he stopped Quinten Timber's long-range strike, but that strategy soon paid dividends thanks to a moment of excellence.
Benjamin Pavard accidentally sliced his clearance to play through Folarin Balogun, who audaciously lifted over Rulli and inside the far post from an acute angle, making him the first Monaco player to score in six straight league matches since 2019.
The visitors did get one back with five minutes to go when Amine Gouiri powered through challenges in the area and fired under Hradecky, but it wasn’t enough to prevent Marseille from slumping to back-to-back league defeats for the first time this season.
Conversely, Monaco’s seventh successive victory means they join tonight’s opponents on 49 points, just one away from Lille in the third and final automatic UEFA Champions League qualification spot.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Lukas Hradecky (AS Monaco)