We’re underdog favourites.

By: Shazback | September 27th, 2007

Well, I was wrong. Terribly wrong. The 3-0 win I thought could happen turned into a 2-0 defeat. Rennes against Sochaux Sochaux changed from a side that was unable to make two good passes in a row against Panionios into a team that set up good offensive moves. Rennes‘ solid midfield turned into a lacklustre show of tired players lacking cohesion and unable to play together.

And as if it wasn’t bad enough, Rennes had another game to play right after where they were favourites again : a Ligue Cup game against Ligue 2 side Clermont Auvergne Foot. However, lightning didn’t strike twice in a week, as Thomert helped Rennes win a quite physical game in extra time.

So? What can we (and I) learn from this?

First of all, that I shouldn’t get too optimistic. I was optimistic before the season started, and Nancy beat us to start our season. Then I doubted as we played against Marseille, Saint-Etienne, less when we faced Metz, Nice and Auxerre, a little more for the game against Lille, and then very little against Lorient and Sochaux. I was so convinced that Rennes would beat Sochaux that I forgot that Rennes are the perfect team you want to be underdogs against, because most of the time, Rennes can’t live up to the pressure.

Secondly, that Rennes’ home form isn’t going to get much worse, but it’ll not be getting much better either. Rennes have 4 wins in 6 away games, without losing away, and yet we only 7 points in 5 games at home. Opponents are ready to come to Rennes to get a draw, and by playing deep and with 5 midfielders, we’re not able to settle into our rhythm with Didot and Leroy running the midfield.

Thirdly, that every series has an end. Rennes’ month of wonders started with a 0-0 away draw against Marseille on August 11th, and finished with a 3-1 away win against Lokomotiv Sofia on September 20th. Sochaux’s month of disasters started and finished on the same dates, with a 3-1 defeat against Le Mans to start it, and a 2-0 defeat against Panionios to end it.

Also, Rennes might not have enough depth to play a front role all season, and the team might work by cycles. With so much creative work relying on Leroy and so much midfield duties being done by Didot, as soon as these players have a dip in performance, the whole team could suffer from it. Wiltord, M’Bia, Sorlin, Marveaux and Cheyrou should be able to step up every now and then, but so far the haven’t proved they could fill in for Leroy or Didot if either of them is injured.

Pouplin is central to Rennes’ performances. However, with his injuries seeming to be recurrent as this season starts, it’s important that Luzi and Catherine prove they can fill Pouplin’s gloves. Luzi has been a good replacement, but with an unsure defence in front of him, I’m not going to ask for miracles. Catherine is the big question mark, since he was supposed to be the 2nd goalkeeper, but injured himself just hours after Pouplin. Let’s hope he’ll not be injured each time Pouplin is.

Hansson or Mensah alongside M’Bia seems to be the best solution in central defence so far. M’Bia is still not a great defender in my opinion, and both Hansson and Mensah are better than him. However, he is able to adapt to both their playing styles, whilst Hansson and Mensah are still ill at ease when playing together. Borne is a nice backup solution, but he’s not consistant yet. He’ll be a great sub for injuries though.

Clermont Auvergne Foot Another thing : Rennes’ strike force is still weak. Rotating strikers is good since they’ll be fresh late into the season, but they’re finding it hard to get used to playing together for the moment. Wiltord is starting to be disappointing with average performances, and even if Emerson needs a lot of adapting, since he came from Saudi Arabia, it would be nice for him to start a few games. After all, he’ll not get any more confident if he doesn’t start… Pagis, Thomert and Briand are getting better each time they play, but still aren’t playing at 100%.

Last thing : Dréossi has started being Benitez-esque with his squad rotation over the last few games. I’m liking it. We’ve got a large pool of good players, and we’ll not be able to challenge successfully for all the competitions we are playing in if we field the same 11 players week in week out. However, he shouldn’t over-do it, and to have 3 or 4 players that are kept from last week’s squad would also help the players to find their marks quicker. Leroy has been playing a lot, so have Didot, Fanni, Edman, Wiltord and Briand. Perhaps resting them all one week wouldn’t be the best solution, but resting 3-4 for “small” games like Clermont is an excellent idea. However, you’ve got to remember to change your tactic a little when players like Leroy aren’t in the quad any longer.

Rennes 0 - 2 Sochaux

Goals
Sochaux : Dalmat 36th, Isabey 58th.

Squads
Rennes :
Luzi - Fanni, M’Bia, Mensah, Edman - Leroy, Marveaux, Didot, Cheyrou, Thomert - Briand
Pagis for Cheyrou 59th, Wiltord for Fanni 65th

Sochaux :
Richert - Daf, Afolabi, N’Daw, Drame - Isabey, Josse, Mathis, Dalmat - Birsa, Dagano
Pancrate for Birsa 82nd

Clermont 0 - 1 Rennes

Goal
Rennes : Thomert 113th

Squads
Clermont :
Quievreux - Marveaux, Mennel, Abdoulaye, Cordonnier - Haaby, Ponge, Hamdany, Diers - Carlier, Diaw
Coue for Ponge 62nd, Pote for Diers 91st, Chaussidiere for Marveaux 109th

Rennes :
Luzi - Jeunechamp, Borne, Mensah - Sorlin, Didot, M’Bia, Marveaux, Cheyrou - Briand, Pagis
Thomert for Pagis 60th, Wiltord for Marveaux 73rd, Badiane for Borne 90+5th