Stade Rennais - Lille : Promises, Promises!

For sure, Frédéric Antonetti’s men were highly convincing in the way they played, and the season could be one to remember, provided they keep this level of quality throughout the year. At this very moment however, time is not to great expectations, disillusions could follow quickly.

Guarantees, Satisfactions… And questions

In control all the way through the game, the Stade Rennais put the Lille squad in a lot of difficulties, thanks especially to a constant pressing, organised by Lemoine, to prevent the Lille offensives to get in the right direction. Used to have the upper hand on this sector of play, Rudi Garcia’s midfielders were struggling to hold the comparison, certainly missing their new international Yoann Cabaye.

Defensively, Rennes showed a lot of serenity. At centre back, the Fanni-Mangane partnership proved its power and solidity. Rarely surprised, the two men have shown Antonetti he can rely on them – provided Fanni doesn’t leave the club – until Apam’s return. On the flanks, Danzé remained focused throughout the game, not letting Hazard display all of his abilities, while Théophile-Catherine was safe on his defensive duties, despite playing on a position he did not really know. A nice surprise for him, as his place in the starting line-up was due to Souprayen’s lack of fitness.

Compared to the previous seasons, the midfield is packed with highly skilled players, and this clearly reflects in the style. With M’Vila banned for this match, Antonetti decided to start the game with Lemoine and Dalmat at centre midfield. The latter was particularly brilliant, bringing technique and control into the midfield, with his ball protection skills, his vision and his abilities to find a solution even in the narrowest spaces.

His arrival was much debated, but the former Sochaux midfielder has already given a clear answer on the pitch. Positioned as a playmaker, Leroy remains as talented despite the years, and once again, his inspirations were often a source of danger for Lille. He was a bit slow to make decisions in some situations in the first half however.

On the attacking line, each of Brahimi’s accelerations allowed Rennes to create the danger forwards. Clever in his game, the French-Algerian was immediately up to the Ligue 1 standards for his first top-flight appearance, and he wasn’t reluctant to bring his support to Danzé in the defensive phases either. Some would argue that he lost the ball that led to Lille’s equalising corner kick. But can we really blame this goal on Brahimi, after the corner was played short and Hazard humiliated the Rennes defence to deliver his cross?

On the left wing, Marveaux’s non selection in the French national squad could be a reason for his average performance. Never really entered in the game, he missed a great chance in the first half, and his brilliant assist for Bangoura was much of a one off. On top of his goal, the Guinean striker showed a lot of movement as a lone centre forward. He showed a lot of availability and his ability to play with his back to the goal was much interesting. Kembo-Ekoko was another satisfaction, when he entered in the latter stages of the game. The young striker played with simplicity and delivered two pinpoint crosses that deserved to be converted into goals. The second was offered to Gyan during injury time, but the Ghanain’s header rattled Landreau’s left post and went out.

Collectively and individually, Rennes showed plenty of quality against one of the League’s best sides, but will it still be the case when they face Arles-Avignon, Nice or Sochaux? For years, the “Rouge et Noir” have been able to raise their game against the best teams, but many disillusions were encountered about much less hyped teams…

Man of the Match: Yacine Brahimi

Certainly not impressed by the occasion, the Montreuil kid displayed much activity, and his technique aroused clamours all around the Route de Lorient. At twenty, his time has come to prove he is strong enough to be a regular in the first team, after a year on loan at Clermont-Foott. During this game, Brahimi was at the origin of every attacking move for his team – including Bangoura’s goal -, often based on his accelerations. His short dribbles or his ability to change pace proved that Brahimi is ready. The best is to come.

A Fact in the Game: Bangoura’s offside

25 minutes in the game, Bangoura passes to Brahimi on the right, the attacking midfielder turns and passes back in the centre to Marveaux. The Rennes left winger delivers a fine ball behind the defence for Bangoura, who calmly beats Marveaux from close range… But the Guinean was offside on his team-mate’s pass. Antonetti spent a lot of time last season, complaining about the referees’ bad decisions against his team. This time, he did not want to discuss the topic, just as his Lille counterpart refused to discuss the decision in too much detail. And this is certainly to his credit.

After match comments

- Bangoura-Marveaux, a year later: On Saturday, Bangoura was at the reception of a pass from Marveaux to score the opener against Lille. A year ago, during the opening game against Boulogne-sur-Mer (3-0), Bangoura scored his first ever goal with Rennes and the club’s first of the 2009-2010 season. And guess who delivered then…

- The revenge of Sow: Only two months after he left Rennes, the former « Rouge et Noir » striker celebrated his come back with an equaliser for Lille. Including the pre-season, Sow has already scored 5 of the 13 Lille goals so far this summer.

- Night of Premieres: Brahimi played is first official game with Rennes this Saturday. Cameroon’s Georges Mandjeck also enjoyed his Ligue 1 Premiere, entering the field shortly after the one-hour mark instead of Marveaux.

- Giant screen blunder: Immediatly after Bangoura’s goal, marked with a blatant offside position, the stadium’s giant screens showed replays of the action, with an obvious view of the referees’ wrong decision. It is in fact forbidden to show any replay on the giant screens, for security reasons.

- Antonetti can’t do it: While Lille is Rennes’ pet peeve since several years, Antonetti is experiencing the same difficulties against Lille manager Rudi Garcia. Indeed, in eight games, the Corsican has never managed to beat Garcia (lost 4, drew 4)