Preview: Montpellier - PSG Handball

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On Sunday evening, Paris Saint-Germain Handball play their postposent Round 7 Lidl Starligue match with a chance to go top of the table. But the task ahead is a tough one, faced with reigning European Champions Montpellier.

Back in the top three

Despite their extremely winning record in the league this season, Montpelier haven't dominated every match so far this campaign, for example trumping visiting Dunkerque by just the single goal (25-24). They dropped points away to Nantes (31-28) and Tremblay (24-24) but since them, Patrice Canayer's men claimed a significant win away to Chambéry in their Round 11 clash. They became the first side to beat the team from the Savoy region this season, and they did so in style (22-29). They confirmed their return to form with a win over high-flying Saint-Raphaël on Thursday evening and duly climbed back into the top three, setting up a chance to second should they get the better of Paris.

 

Richardson on the rise

It's tough to pick one particular player who has stood out for Montpellier this season, so talent-packed is their squad. They have future Parisian Vincent Gerard and France internationals Michael Guigou and Valentin Porte, as well as Diego Simonet. However, it is perhaps Melvyn Richardson who has to proven most valuable to the team in this first half of the season. The France international has been in fine form in Europe, racking up 63 goals so far, but the 21-year-old has also shone in domestic duties. After 11 matches, the right-back is Montpellier's top scorer, with 66 goals (fifth on the Lidl Starligue scorers chart), notably shooting 10 from 12 against Tremblay and 9 from 10 against Cesson, a performance that earned him a place in the Lidl Starligue Best 7 for Round 10.

 

Champs versus runners-up

No matter what form these two sides are in, this fixture is always man exciting one - and the ;last few have proven to be no exception to this rule. After being beaten in the Sud de France Arena (33-30) in a see-seesawing thriller a year ago almost to the day, Les Rouge et Bleu thought they had effectively conceded their crown to Montpellier. IN the end, however, thanks to a superior head-to-head goal difference (26-19 at Coubertin), the capital club re-took top spot two matches from the end of the season and hung on to become Champions of France once again. Paris and Montpellier have already met once this season, with the capital club claiming a 33-30 win over Montpellier in the final of the Eurotournoi at the Rhénus in Strasbourg back in August.

 

Our key stats

A draw would be enough for Raul Gonzalez's men to climb to top spot on the Lidl Starligue table. With 21 points, they are just one length behind leaders Nantes (who have played one match more) while boasting the best goal difference in the competition (+73). This whopping tally has come thanks to excellent performance at both ends of the court: heading into this rescheduled fixture, Paris boast the competition's most prolific attack (346 goals cored) and its second-tightest defence (273 goals conceded). In individual terms, Mikkel Hansen is our top scorer with 58 goals, with Nedim Remili not far behind on 51. Meanwhile, Thierry Omeyer remains among the top ten save-makers in our league, with 81 decisive stops.

 

To follow the match (Throw-off at 18:30)

• Television: beIN SPORTS 3

• Live tweet: our official page



(Credits: TeamPics/PSG)