French Ligue One side Montpellier HSC currently sit second in the league table. They are just three points behind league champions and leaders Bordeaux.
It’s an amazing rise for a club who were only promoted from the French second division just year.
History
The club in its current guise was only formed in 1974. However the city has had a football team for 101 years since Stade Olympique de Montpellier was formed. The club have flitted between amateur and professional status throughout their long history.
The club turned professional for the last time in 1978 and were re-branded in 1989 as Montpellier Herault Sport Club (HSC). 20 years later they returned to the French top flight. It would be a fairytale story if Montpellier claimed a top six finish, never mind a French league title.
Ligue One
Their recent form is good with five wins out of the last six games. This form is keeping them above the likes of French giants Lyon and Marseille. On a limited budget they have managed what big spending Lyon couldn’t do, that’s challenge champions Bordeaux.
Strike-force
Montpellier’s success has been partly down to the strike-partnership of Victor Montano and Souleymane Camara. Colombian striker Montano has struck eight league goals so far in Ligue One. On-loan Senegalese forward Souleymane Camara may only have five goals in the league but he helps hold the ball up front and brings teammates into the game.
Montano wasn’t especially prolific before this season but his goal tally has really improved playing alongside Camara. It seems he’s thriving more in the top flight than he did in the second tier of French football.
Strong
Another key player in the clubs success is veteran defender and captain Nenad Dzodic. The 33 year-old Serbian has provided experience and strength at the back for Montpellier. He has spent 10 years at the club in two separate spells.
Rising Star
One of Montpellier’s rising stars is young winger Karim Ait-Fana. The graduate of the famous French football academy Clairefontaine has scored four league goals this season, after scoring six goals to help his club to promotion last season.
Ait-Fana has chosen to represent France ahead of Morocco, who he was also eligible to represent. He has already played for France’s under-21 international side. However he could still play for Morocco in the future if he wishes. The form that the youngster is currently in, the Moroccans will be trying their hardest to persuade him to change his mind.
Boss
Montpellier HSC boss Rene Girard was involved in the French international setup for ten years before joining the club, including being French assistant manager from 1998-2002. Ironically Girard spent eight years at Bordeaux during his playing days and also played for Nimes.
The 55 year-old also managed Nimes at the start of his career before moving to Pau FC and then RC Strasbourg. He then choose to leave club football and join his national’s sides coaching staff before helping developing French youngsters with the under-19s, under-16s and under-21s.
However in 2009 he decided to return to club football with HSC. After eleven years out of club football his spell at Montpellier has proved a resounding success. He has proved to everybody that he can work with senior players as well as the youngsters.
Success
I bet the Montpellier fans can’t believe the current position their club find themselves in. When promoted they must of been hoping to just survive and consolidate for a season and then look to move on in the second season.
However they are looking good for a European place next season. The young and talented Montpellier side look to have the quality and the spirit to hold on to a Europa League spot. If they hold onto a top six finish it will prove an amazing accomplishment for a side with such a turbulent history.
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