Clermont vs Rennes prediction: FRANCE: Ligue 1 betting tips on match 2023-01-10 18:00.
A shock 1-0 win over Lyon to start 2023 reinforced Clermont’s claim for a top-half finish in only their second Ligue 1 season. However, they face this test after a disheartening cup exit to lower-league Strasbourg Koenigshoffen, while equally as demoralising is an 11-point gap to fifth place which leaves the Lancers needing either an incredible run of results or a minor miracle to get into Europe.
For now, the focus is on beating upcoming visitors Rennes yet again, a year to the month since a 2-1 win over the European chasing Rouge et Noir. That was an impressive feat considering Rennes’ eventual status as 2021/22’s second-highest scorers behind PSG, but Clermont have had no trouble finding the net themselves lately, scoring in nine of their previous ten league outings, interestingly netting exactly once on seven occasions.
A significant contributor to Rennes’ tally of 82 league goals last term was the other H2H that season, which brought a 6-0 win. They’ve largely retained that potency too, averaging exactly two goals per league game in 2022/23 following a 2-1 win over Nice to start their year, though only a victory here gives Rennes any chance of ending the night in third place.
While the visitors’ free-scoring attack makes them a popular pick to finish inside the final UEFA Champions League qualification spot, admirers of a solid defence should look away now. A 3-1 loss at Reims ensured that Rennes travel here on the back of 19 Ligue 1 road trips without a shutout, in a sequence that also encompassed the whole of 2022 – though it was the only game in that leaky run to end in a defeat by 2+ goals.
Players to watch: Muhammed Cham scored from the spot in Clermont’s win over Lyon, his sixth straight goal to arrive beyond the hour mark. As for the visitors, Benjamin Bourigeaud proved the difference against Nice, and he also netted Saturday’s cup opener against Bordeaux – his third straight goalscoring game to end in a 2-1 win for Rennes.
Hot streak: The away side on the day has netted first in each of Clermont’s last six Ligue 1 games.