Rennes vs Fenerbahce prediction: EUROPE: Europa League – Group Stage betting tips on match 2022-09-14 19:00.
It wasnât all plain-sailing for Rennes in their 5-0 win over Auxerre on Sunday, with Baptiste Santamaria suffering an ankle injury, leading manager Bruno GĂ©nĂ©sio to suggest heâd have to use their transfer âjokerâ to replace him. While Ligue 1 clubs can sign one player from another French club before January, for now heâll have to make do without as they look to back up last weekâs 2-1 UEFA Europa League (UEL) win over AEK Larnaca.
This fixture with Fenerbahçe, their first ever clash against a Turkish club, takes on extra importance as both are seemingly contenders to win the group and avoid the tricky knockout round play-off. Three straight wins at home whilst scoring an average of 3.33 goals per game should help Rennes start in a positive frame of mind in a bid to extend their five-match unbeaten European home run (W3, D2).
Considering Fenerbahçe have only lost one of their last five encounters with French sides (W2, D2) and only been beaten once in their last ten competitive fixtures (W7, D2), this could be a closely-fought affair. The Turkish giants beat Dynamo Kyiv 2-1 to open their UECL campaign but wonât have much support here after Rennes decided to limit the number of fans attending for security reasons.
A 1-0 defeat to Konyaspor in their latest league away fixture might make them a little nervous about a trip to France, as despite their half decent recent record against French teams, Fenerbahçe have lost five of their last six away European games against French clubs (W1). On a positive note, theyâve only lost one of their last six UEL away games (W3, D2), which includes a 1-1 draw against last season's UEL champions Eintracht Frankfurt.
Players to watch: Martin Terrier has netted in each of Rennesâ last three home games, twice bagging the gameâs third goal, while Fenerbahçeâs Michy Batshuayi has two goal contributions (G1, A1) from three previous meetings with Rennes.
Hot stat: Thereâs been five red cards shown across Rennesâ last four UEL home games.