Ligue Review finds Rennes’ early promise fading in Ligue 1

Stade Rennais entered this season with a familiar sense of promise. Perhaps that should have been taken as the first warning sign that things were not going to go according to plan. After all, promise has so often turned to disappointment in recent seasons.

There were reasons to think it would be different, that Rennes were in pole position to become the best of the rest in Ligue 1. Unlike many other teams in France’s top flight, Rennes had continuity coming into this season. They were one of six teams to keep their head coach from the previous campaign, with Franck Haise remaining in charge.

The squad also largely remained intact, with Liverpool‑bound Jérémy Jacquet the biggest departure, a player known in advance and who had spent months out injured. Rennes kept prodigious talent Abdelhamid Aït Boudlal despite reported Premier League interest. They also retained Esteban Lepaul, hot off a golden‑boot‑winning season. The club bolstered the side that had secured a UEFA Europa League place with proven Ligue 1 talent Charlie Cresswell and Adrien Thomasson arriving from Toulouse FC and RC Lens respectively.

The season started well with a 2‑2 draw at home to Paris Saint‑Germain, although Rennes will contest that this should still be considered an away game as scheduled. This was followed by three consecutive wins against Le Mans FC, Angers SCO and Olympique de Marseille. There was a sense that after many false dawns, Rennes were not just second best on paper but on the pitch.

Defensive frailties undermine early optimism

Since then the wheels have come off. After ten Ligue 1 games Rennes have recorded five wins, one draw and four defeats and will enter the international break sitting in eighth place. The defence has been alarmingly porous, with only two clean sheets and twenty‑one goals conceded. Only three teams have a worse defensive record: Le Havre AC, RC Strasbourg Alsace and AJ Auxerre.

PSG eyes another Lens youngster as Ganiou interest fades

Coaching pressures and league ripples

On Sunday afternoon Haise trialled a new 3‑5‑2 formation against Lille OSC, deviating from the customary 4‑3‑3. Despite the change Rennes conceded two of Lille’s three shots on target and lost 2‑1. The attack has been the strength of the side, scoring twenty‑two league goals, joint‑best with Paris Saint‑Germain. Esteban Lepaul has scored seven in seven Ligue 1 matches when fit.

An ankle sprain has kept Lepaul out of the last three league games, and without him the attack appears over‑reliant. A Lepaul‑less attack was not enough to rescue a point against Lille, and Rennes watched Davide Ancelotti’s Les Dogues celebrate another weekend ending second.

The pressure was kept on Yannick Cahuzac’s fledgling career as Lens head coach after a 2‑1 defeat to Olympique de Marseille, compounded by a humiliating 9‑1 European loss mid‑week. Questions are being asked of the first‑time coach despite his internal promotion and close friendship with the sporting director. Read the full story HERE.

Strasbourg, under BlueCo ownership, have flirted with Europe but now appear in trouble, with recent form suggesting they are sleepwalking towards relegation danger. PSG, expected to record their eleventh consecutive win across all competitions when hosting newly promoted ESTAC Troyes, were forced to work for a narrow victory, decided by Illia Zabarnyi’s first‑half header.