Montpellier sensationally became the champion of France

Eurofootball

Last weekend the 2011/12 football season ended in France and Italy. For the first time in history, Montpellier became the French champion, defeating Auxerre in the final round - 2:1 - and leaving PSG, which spent 100 million euros on transfers, in second place. The Italian Cup was won by Napoli, who inflicted the first defeat of the season on Juventus of Turin in the final - 2:0.

French Championship

What Montpellier did in the concluded French championship defies common sense. Before this season, this club's record included only two French Cups and one League Cup. Naturally, before the start of the 2011/12 championship, no one considered Rene Girard’s team among the favorites. In the previous championship, it finished only 14th and seemed to be many times inferior to Marseille, Lyon, Lille and PSG in terms of personnel potential. However, before the final round, it was Montpellier who led the standings, three points ahead of PSG.

The team from Montpellier had a serious opponent in the Parisians. PSG, which has the enormous financial potential of its Qatari investors, spent more than 100 million euros on the acquisition of new football players, lured Leonardo, who headed Inter Milan, to the post of sporting director, and appointed the famous Carlo Ancelotti as head coach. Despite this, on Sunday, at the end of the final round, Montpellier President Louis Nicollin had reason to declare: “We have wiped the noses of the Parisians!”

In the previous championship, Montpellier finished only in fourteenth place

To become champions, PSG needed to win away at Lorient and hope to defeat Montpellier. Nevertheless, after the first half of the meeting, PSG was inferior 0:1 - Lorient forward Kevin Monnet-Paquet closed in Lucas Mareke's cross. In the second half, the Parisians, with the help of precise shots from Javier Pastore, who cost them 42 million euros, and Tiago Motta, whose transfer cost 11.5 million euros, snatched a 2:1 victory. True, it turned out to be useless.

Montpellier, playing away against Auxerre, which is leaving the top division, also conceded first - after a corner kick, Geoffrey Jourdain hit Olivier Capo. However, even before the break, Nigerian John Utaka, responding to Suleiman Kamara's cross, equalized the score. In the second half of the meeting, which was extended for 70 minutes due to the outrages of the fans of the Auxerre team, Utaka scored a double and brought René Girard’s team a victory - 2:1. She secured Montpellier's first championship title in the club's history. “Before the start of the season, I could not even imagine that something like this could happen to us. But Parisians should not be too upset: over the next five years, PSG will have no equal in France,” emphasized the president of the new champion, Louis Nicollin.

Italian Cup

The football season in Italy ended with the final of the national cup. On Sunday, Juventus and Napoli met at Rome's Stadio Olimpico. The clear favorites of the confrontation were the Turin team, who not only won the national championship, but also did not suffer a single defeat in the championship and the national Cup (Juventus did not compete in European competition).

But the Neapolitans defeated Juventus in Rome, and deservedly so. Walter Mazzarri's team indicated their advantage already in the opening of the match. In the second minute, goalkeeper Marco Storari saved Juventus from a clear goal after Camilo Zuniga's point-blank header. Soon Ezequiel Lavezzi shot dangerously from the penalty line - the ball whizzed near the post. And Marek Hamsik lacked just a few centimeters to catch Lavezzi's set-piece pass.

Ezequiel Lavezzi's activity brought Napoli success after the break. In the 62nd minute, the Argentine rushed into the opponent's penalty area at speed, where he was brought down by the goalkeeper. The penalty was converted by Edinson Cavani. Attempts by the Turin team to recoup came to nothing. Moreover, Antonio Conte's team soon conceded another goal on the counterattack. Marek Hamsik finished it off with a shot into the bottom corner. Juventus lost 0:2, missing the opportunity to make a golden double.

Sergey Melnik

Result

French Championship. Final, 38th round

Auxerre--Montpellier 1:2. Evian--Brest 0:1. Lille--Nancy 4:1. Lorient--PSG 1:2. Lyon--Nice 3:4. Rennes--Dijon 5:0. St Etienne-Bordeaux 2:3. Sochaux--Marseille 1:0. Toulouse--Ajaccio 0:2. Valenciennes--Caen 3:1. Team position. 1. Montpellier - 82 points. 2. PSG - 79. 3. Lille - 74. 4. Lyon - 64. 5. Bordeaux - 61. 6. Rennes - 60.

Montpellier and PSG will play in the group stage of the Champions League in the 2012/13 season, Lille will play in its qualification. Lyon, Bordeaux and Marseille (as the winner of the French League Cup) will compete in the Europa League. Caen, Dijon and Auxerre left the top division. Bastia, Reims and Troyes will perform in their place.

Italian Cup. The final

Napoli-Juventus 2:0.

PSG was one hundred million short