EA Guingamp 0-2 Stade Rennais | Match Report

Stade Rennais ended their year on a high by defeating local rivals, EA Guingamp by two goals to nil away at the Stade Roudourou.

After a tedious first half, the second certainly made up for it with Ousmane Dembele hitting the first of the evening in the 64th minute. The second goal came from his attacking partner, Giovanni Sio who netted on 77 minutes.

The visitors came into the game from a hiding in the league cup at the hands of Toulouse. Several changes were made to the team following the defeat. Back into the starting 11 came Benjamin Andre, while Sylvain Armand replaced the injured Pedro Mendes at centre-back. The hosts changed their shape entirely for this Brittany Derby, reverting to 4-3-3 from their familiar 4-4-2.

Slow first period

It took 13 minutes before the first effort on goal took place. 18-year-old French international, Dembele, came in from the left to hit a low effort which was deflected for a corner. His next chance got a sarcastic cheer from the home support as the winger produced a snap shot deep inside the box.

Five minutes later, Guingamp passed up a guilt edged opportunity of their own. Younousse Sankhare headed down following a cross into the box. A little surprised he got the chance, the Guingamp midfielder couldn’t put enough conviction on the ball which made it an easy catch for goalkeeper, Benoit Costil.

Arguably the best chance of the half fell to the feet of Rennes’ Pedro Henrique. The Brazillian winger manufactured enough space inside the box for him to pull off a shot straight down the throat of Guingamp stopper, Jonas Lossl. Fortunately for the hosts, Lossl pulled off a strong save to turn the ball over the bar.

A second half much more pleasing on the eye

After what was a highly uninteresting first half, the second had to pick up if any team wanted to get all three points, they were there for the taking. The restart produced the best chance of the match, with Dembele once again being in the thick of it. The youngster set himself up to force another solid stop from Lossl.

The best chance until then for Guingamp came along soon after when Jeremy Sorbon flashed a volley from seven yards over the bar. The next opportunity for Guingamp was even closer as Jonathan Martins Pereira’s shot from outside the box made Costil dart across goal to tip it onto the bar.

The scoring did eventually open on 63 minutes when Dembele notched his second goal of the season. His strike team mate, Sio, placed a neatly hit pass into the path of the winger who only needed one touch with his left foot to slot under Lossl. The team celebrated with their fans as they all ran into a small pocket that’d gathered behind the net.

The next Rennes goal saw a role reversal with the scorer becoming the architect and the assister becoming the converter. On a counter-attack, Dembele produced a long ground pass into space which Sio latched onto. The Ivorian ace drove into the box and produced a cheeky lob over the goalkeeper which ended up in the far right corner of the net. Sio showed off to his critics in the celebration- standing in front of the travelling fans placing a finger in both of his ears.

As the game drew to a close, there was more of an attacking Guingamp performance as they tried to get what would have been a consolation. The only chance that came to fruition was from Laurent Dos Santos who hit low from distance but proved no menace to Costil who collected. The final break of the tie was for another Rennes youth player, Nicholas Janvier, who was unlucky to see his shot narrowly evade the target.

The victory from Les Rouges et Noirs preserves what has been a surprising away form. Philippe Montanier’s men have only experienced one defeat this season. However, their home record has been dismal meaning a loss today could have seen the departure of the manager. The defeat for Guingamp continues their torrid season as they remain in a relegation spot, sitting third from bottom.

Guingamp XI: Lossl; Pereira, Kerbat, Sorbon, Dos Santos; Mathis, Diallo (Privat); Coco (Benezet), Sankhare, Salibur; Briand

Rennes XI: Costil; Danze, Diagne, Armand, M'Bengue; Fernandes, Andre (Doucoure); Dembele, Quintero (Janvier), Henrique (Moreira); Sio

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