Montpellier vs Rennes prediction: FRANCE: Ligue 1 betting tips on match 2023-09-23 15:05.
After suffering two successive Ligue 1 defeats, the overriding emotion in the Montpellier camp would have been one of relief after picking up a point on the road at Strasbourg last week (2-2). However, a sour taste was left in the mouth of manager Michel Der Zakarian, as not only did his side squander a 2-0 half-time lead, but they were also denied a winner deep into stoppage time by a controversial VAR call.
Der Zakarian blasted that call as an “incomprehensible and unfair” decision post-match, but can’t dwell much longer as he looks to muster up a gameplan to help Montpellier, already four points worse off than they were at this stage last season, avoid failing to win in four Ligue 1 outings for the first time since they went seven without a success in November last year. He’ll hope that victories in two of the last three home H2Hs against Rennes (L1), including in April with just ten men from the 53rd minute, can inspire a confidence boost.
Talking of boosts, Rennes got one of their own in midweek European action as a 3-0 win over Maccabi Haifa ended an uninspiring run of four successive Ligue 1 draws. They could only muster a 2-2 draw at home to Lille last weekend, but perhaps that wasn’t a great surprise given there wasn’t a single home victory across the whole division in Ligue 1’s gameweek five!
The task for manager Bruno Génésio will be building on the success in midweek to help start turning more of these draws into wins, and here he will be aiming to do so against a familiar foe. As a manager, Génésio has faced only PSG (15) more often than Montpellier (14), and in his career, he’s never beaten a side on more occasions than La Paillade (W9, D3, L2).
Players to watch: Midfielder Téji Savanier was the man sent off when these two sides last met, but he’ll be hoping for a more positive impact this time around after an assist in Montpellier’s last outing and a Flashscore rating of 7.0+ in each appearance this season. Rennes will be hoping Ludovic Blas can launch another fast start with his two goals from his last four competitive appearances both coming inside the opening 15 minutes.
Hot stat: Montpellier’s only Ligue 1 clean sheet from their last seven home matches came against Rennes (W2, D2, L3).