Tuesday 17 April 2012

A monumental season for Montpellier HSC


A monumental season for Montpellier HSC

         In England, we are spoiled with the glamour of the Barclays Premier League and so the knowledge of various European leagues may be lacking for the every day English football fan. When I ask people what they imagine when thinking of Ligue 1, they mention the dominance of Olympic Lyonnais as well as it being the league that an ex England favourite in Joe Cole has escaped to after his horror season at Liverpool.
                           Yet, despite the belief that such teams as Olympic Lyonnais and Marseille are the two powerhouses of French football, as of 2012, this claim would be wrong, as in the last three years, Bordeaux and Lille have taken the title (as well as a first win for Marseille in a number of years after finishing second best on many occasions). We must also not forget the newly confirmed “oil rich” Paris Saint German after appointing previous Chelsea boss Carlo Ancelotti as manager, and splashing the cash on various stars such as Javier Pastore.  Yet despite the challenge of clubs such as Lille and PSG, in one of the strangest Ligue 1 seasons I can remember, a new club is on everyones lips, this club being Montpellier Herault Sporting Club.
                           The South Eastern City club are sitting on the summit of Ligue 1, holding off the incredibly rich PSG, and yet they have not spent masses on a new squad in attempt to improve on their last season, finishing 14th in the League and a valiant cup run, ending runners up to Marseille.  They sit on 66 points from 32 games, and yet despite the gap between them and PSG being closed to 3 points, the achievements of the team managed by the ex France u21 manager René Girard have been astronomical.




                           I recently watched Montpellier dispatch of Marseille at the Stade Vélodrome in a 3-1 victory, in which I witnessed one of the goals of the season (a wonderfully executed scissor kick). The goal scorers in this game arguably epitomise the clubs amazing season, as they have also rose from nowhere to become two players on many clubs shortlists for the summer. These players being Younès Belhanda, a 22 year old Moroccan, who Girard himself compared to the legendary Robert Pirès as well as the current Ligue 1 top goal scorer Olivier Giroud, a 25 year old striker who has notched up no less than 20 goals this season in the league. A brace from Belhanda (the latter being a strike of real quality, as you can see from the highlights below) and an equally exquisite finish from Giroud were what saw off the newly crowned Coupe de la Ligue champion, and they are goals that any football fan would applaud.
         Highlights Marseille 1-3 MHSC

If this team can fend off supposedly “bigger” clubs for their star players, I see no reason why they cannot have a real go in the Champions League next year, also, as we can see by looking at financial statistics, this teams performances have been based on chemistry and passion, not a cheque book, so I wish the best of luck to Montpellier for the final stage of the Ligue 1 campaign