Montpellier were not quite able to force European football, despite finishing eighth in Ligue 1 and going close to beating Paris Saint-Germain in the Coupe de France semi-final, losing out only on penalties.
It was indeed a case of so close but so far for Michel Der Zakarian’s side, who never seemed quite able to get up a head of steam required to make a good push to go further.
Offensively, they were exceptional, with the quartet of Florian Mollet, Teji Savanier, Gaetan Laborde and Andy Delort all strong performers. Indeed, there is arguably no better understanding between forwards in the whole of Ligue 1 like Laborde and Delort, who scored 37 goals between them in all competitions and have an elite level of complicity.
Stephy Mavididi’s performances should also not go unnoticed as his level helped force a change in formation away from Der Zakarian’s long-time favoured three at the back into a 4-3-3. He finished the season on nine goals.
The defensive side of Montpellier’s game was not nearly so good. Daniel Congre, Pedro Mendes and Hilton all showed some signs of their age, while Arnaud Souquet, who had been such a potent weapon as a right wing-back, was not nearly so effective due to the switch to a flat back four. His place was taken by Junior Sambia.
In goal, meanwhile, Jonas Omlin had a decent debut season but will be pushed next season by France Under-21 goalkeeper Dimitry Bertaud, who took over for the last games of the campaign due to injury and impressed.
It threatens to be all change in the summer at Montpellier, though. Der Zakarian will depart the club, leaving a coaching void that must be filled. The work he conducted was strong, and they will have a hard time finding better.
