Ligue 1, Stade rennais 2 - 0 Nice. Rennes returns in second position, Boye is the « best defender in the squad » according to Antonetti, a seventh taker for as many penalties, Leroy finds his touch again to assist, Montaño finds his to score… All echoes after Rennes’ victory over Nice.
- Rennes holds firm to the podium :
_Rennes’ victory, combined to Paris Saint-Germain’s draw against Lens (1-0) allows Frédéric Antonetti’s team to install themselves as the sole second in the league standings. A position Stade Rennes had abandoned after their defeat in Auxerre (1-2) and that the “Rouge et Noir” had never occupied since.
Since the beginning of the season, Stade Rennes has been in one of the first three places after 16 of the 23 game week played. However, by bringing the result of Marseille-Rennes to the day it should have played, the Stade Rennais would have been on the podium after 19 of 23 match days.
- Seven penalties, seven different takers :
After the two penalty-kicks missed by Brahimi and Leroy against Reims, who was going to try and make the break against Nice? Razak Boukari finally stepped-up, successfully.
Since the beginning of the seasons, in all competitions, Stade Rennes has been awarded no less than seven penalties… And seven different Players have tried their luck with mixed fortunes: Marveaux (scored against Toulouse), Kembo (stopped in Marseille), Montaño (scored against Monaco), M’Vila (scored against Arles-Avignon), Brahimi (stopped against Reims), Leroy (stopped against Reims) and now Boukari. One would also note that Yacine Brahimi caused a penalty for the third time, after already earning spot-kicks against Arles-Avignon and Reims.
- Leroy assists again :
Jérôme Leroy managed his fourth assist of the season on Rennes’ first goal. There had been several months since the Rennes midfielder last managed it. After delivering two assists in Nancy (0-3), he had only given one more, on a free-kick delivery to Mangane against Toulouse (3-1). However, the former Paris man remains quite far of the ten assists delivered by Marvin Martin since the beginning of the season.
Over the last few weeks, Yacine Brahimi had also managed to reach a total of three assists in all competitions. Leroy is now the only Rennes players to reach four.
- Six in a row :
By beating Nice, Stade Rennes have managed their sixth consecutive home victory in Ligue 1. Since the reception of Lyon (1-1), Brest (2-1), Monaco (1-0), Valenciennes (1-0), Arles-Avignon (4-0), Paris (1-0) and now Nice (2-0) have all left Brittany empty-handed.
Those results make Stade Rennes the second Ligue 1 team at home only behind Lille. The “Dogues” are only ahead of the “Rouge et Noir” thanks to the goal difference however. These results are a compensation for Rennes’ embarrassing lack of consistency on the road. Indeed, Frédéric Antonetti’s players haven’t won away since their trip… to Nice on September 25th.
- Montaño kept his promise :
Just as Leroy for the assists, Victor Hugo Montaño has returned as sole leader of Rennes goal scorers. His total is now of five goals scored in Ligue 1 and seven in all competitions. A goal which closes a string of five consecutive games without scoring in Ligue 1, and worse, of twelve games without scoring in open play in the competition. Indeed, last time Montaño scored in open play in the league was… the first leg against Nice at the Stade du Ray. In the process, Montaño becomes the most prolific Colombian goal scorer in the history of Ligue 1, overtaking Victor Bonilla, a striker for Toulouse, Nantes and Montpellier in the early 2000s.
Once again, Montaño won his duel against his fellow countryman David Ospina, the Nice goalkeeper. During the press conference this Friday, the Rennes striker admitted to have a good rate of success against him. “I have indeed scored against him with Montpellier and Rennes, he explained. Actually, last time, he was a bit fed up as I always seem to bounce back against him. I’ll do my best to make it happen on Sunday”. Job done!
- Tettey under the threat of a suspension :
Booked during the game, Alexander Tettey has now received two yellow cards in eight games. The Norwegian midfielder will have to avoid receiving any against Toulouse and Lens, or he will receive an automatic one match ban. Also under the threat, Jean-Armel Kana-Biyik who will have to avoid any sanction - if he plays - against Toulouse only.
Interesting to note that Rennes’ players are remarkably fair-play recently. Apart for the red card received by Douchez in Sochaux, only 4 yellow cards have been received over the last eight games. Insignificant compared to the 27 bookings and 2 dismissals received during the previous 19 games.
- Successful debuts for Boye :
John Boye had been waiting for it since two and a half years. Never offered a start since he arrived in Rennes, the Ghanaian defender has profited of the many injuries in defence to make his Ligue 1 debuts. For a Premiere, Boye did well, doing the job without looking for complications. A reassuring performance, since his games with the Reserve have not always been that convincing. The defender, the third Ghanaian to play competitive professional football with Stade Rennes, is also the twelfth player to be offered his debut with the “Rouge et Noir” this season in Ligue 1.
After the game, Boye has even received praise from Frédéric Antonetti. “With John Boye, I wasn’t worried, as he may well be the best defender in the squad, the Rennes manager affirmed. You’re surprised aren’t you? But I tell you, he only needs to control his emotions. But he is an excellent bloke and you will see he will succeed too”. It remains to be seen why the “best defender in the squad” has been kept at bay for so long before being awarded his Ligue 1 debuts…
- Éric Roy vexed :
OGC Nice manager Éric Roy had a bad day yesterday. In the post-match press conference, the former Marseille player regretted the bad attitude of his team in away fixtures, and the occasions wasted at the end of the first half.
«We need to be much better in using the ball, in commitment to win the one-on-ones, in positive aggressiveness simply, Roy explained. There was too much lacking against a team such as Rennes to hope for a better result. With a 0-0 at half-time, we could have thought the time will play for us, but by conceding a goal early in the second half we lost the opportunity to make Rennes doubt, it’s a shame”.
- Doumbia returns:
Brought to the game for the last fifteen minutes, Tongo Doumbia has returned to the Ligue 1 pitches after nearly two months of absence. His last game was indeed the trip to Caen on December 22nd.
In the meantime, the midfielder had served a four match ban following his bad challenge on Jaroslav Plašil during Bordeaux-Rennes. He also missed two additional matches because of an injury: Rennes-Cannes early January and Rennes-PSG last week-end.
- Photo : srfc.frenchwill.fr
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