For the Breton club, the discovery of the C1 implies a change of dimension and this also applies to its rearguard, which will be decisive on Wednesday evening at Stamford Bridge to dream of a first Rennes victory in the European queen event.
It was in anticipation of this kind of evening that Rennes had recruited the Italian Daniele Rugani. But the defender of Juventus Turin was injured in Seville (1-0 defeat), leaving Da Silva, long pillar of Ligue 2, and Aguerd, who arrived this summer from Dijon, to compose his central defense.
Admittedly, the two players made a success of their start to the season and very quickly agreed defensively. “In these positions, complementarity between the players is fundamental. They talk to each other a lot, they communicate, they exchange a lot on a daily basis, ”greeted their coach Julien Stéphan at the start of the season. But under their leadership, the Rennes defense experienced almost every game moments of deconcentration, small slumps, placement errors, pressing defects … which cost the team dearly. And in Seville, it was especially goalkeeper Alfred Gomis who spared his teammates a heavier score.
Fortunately, their complicity also extends to corner kickers, as they showed again on Saturday against Brest (2-1) by both scoring with a header to give Rennes their first victory in six matches. For each, it was the third goal of the season, already as much, or almost, as the total of their last two seasons (3 for Da Silva, 4 for Aguerd).
“It would be even more beautiful to beat them now”
But this success on set pieces also obscures a lack of realism in Rennes in the course of the game, especially in recent weeks, during which Julien Stéphan’s men have experienced frustrating phases of sterile domination.
However, they know that they will not have many chances against Chelsea, especially since they will still have to deal with the absence of the prodigy Eduardo Camavinga, injured … and they will find themselves facing a monument .
Arrived for free in a Chelsea which had opened its wallet wide, spending more than 250 million euros this summer, Thiago Silva has put in his pocket the opposing attackers as well as the most skeptical observers, despite an entry into complicated matter. At his side, Kurt Zouma is very complementary in the axis thanks to his speed. And the French international also headed, from a corner, his 3rd goal of the season on Saturday in Chelsea’s victory at Burnley (3-0). In their last four matches, the two men, associated with former Rennes goalkeeper Edouard Mendy, silenced the attacks from Crystal Palace, Manchester United and Burnley, but also from Sevilla in the Champions League (0-0).
Beyond his properly defensive qualities, it is especially in the revival that Thiago Silva (36) impressed, with a minimal waste rate in his passes. “His experience and leadership are great and I think his defensive quality helps the team a lot. We are very happy to have him with us, ”commented captain Cesar Azpilicueta after the game against the Red Devils (0-0).
But Rennes midfielder James Lea-Siliki ensures that he is not afraid of Chelsea, his defense and his shining attack, even though the Londoners seem to be gaining momentum. “It would be even more beautiful to beat them now (…) We will not start favorites but a match is never played in advance and we have already seen exploits. It happened before, it will happen later and why not us? ”He said.
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