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After beating Kiel and Vardar in the previous two matches, Montpellier HB had a tougher nut to crack than expected to defeat Meshkov Brest 32:26 on Wednesday night, as the gap only widened in the final stages. While goalkeeper Kevin Bonnefoi shone for the victors with 15 saves, his former teammate Baptiste Bonnefond was Meshkov’s top scorer (5/9) - but finally the Belarusian champions remain on the bottom of the group, still on zero points. Thanks to six points in a row, Montpellier are equal with Kiel now.
GROUP A:
Montpellier HB (FRA) vs HC Meshkov Brest (BLR) 32:26 (14:12)
- It was Montpellier’s fourth straight victory against Meshkov in five matches.
- 23-year-old Julien Bos had his individual high score of this Champions League season for Montpellier with eleven goals after scoring seven goals against Vardar and Kiel.
- His first goal (via penalty) of the day and Brest's seventh making 7:4 was the 600th goal of Brest’s right wing Mikita Vailupau in all competitions for Meshkov after joining the club in 2018.
- The first crucial period of the close encounter was, when Montpellier turned a 7:4 for Brest into a 10:8 for the hosts, the second one, when they turned a 16:15 deficit into a 22:17 lead - mainly thanks to Bonnefoi’s saves.
- Bos scored eight of eleven goals in the second half and finally sealed the deal with the 29:24 scoreline in the 57th minute.
Great return, but no points for Bonnefond
In 2018, Baptiste Bonnefond was part of Montpellier’s squad, when they won the EHF Champions League in Cologne. After five years at MAHB (until 2019), the 28-year-old left back transferred to PAUC, before he signed his first contract abroad this summer - at Meshkov Brest. On Wednesday, Bonnefond returned with a strong performance to the city, where he had even been youth and junior team player - becoming Meshkov’s top scorer with five goals, but still waiting for his first Champions League point with Brest.
TEXT: EHF / Björn Pazen
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