Rennes vs Villarreal prediction: EUROPE: Europa League – Group Stage betting tips on match 2023-12-13 17:45.
With their place in the knockout play-off round of the UEFA Europa League (UEL) already secured, Rennes enter matchday six needing merely to avoid defeat to advance directly to the last 16. The only points they’ve dropped in Group F so far came in a 1-0 defeat against Villarreal in the reverse fixture though, so perhaps a spot of revenge will be on the minds of Julien Stéphan's men.
While their European campaign has been plain sailing, domestic action has been anything but, with Rennes winning just one of their last eight matches in Ligue 1 (D1, L6). That misery continued with a 2-1 home defeat against Monaco on Saturday, their third from their last six outings at Roazhon Park (W2, D1) – demons they’ll be confident of banishing given that they’ve lost just one of their last four home games against Spanish opposition (W1, D2).
With a six-point lead over the third-placed Panathinaikos, Villarreal are already guaranteed to continue their UEL campaign next spring, but they must win on matchday six to head straight to the last 16. The Yellow Submarine have hardly had the ideal preparation for such an important fixture, as Marcelino’s men were taught a “lesson” by Real Sociedad in a 3-0 defeat at the weekend.
That continued a miserable return of two wins from their last 11 league matches (D4, L5), placing them in the same disappointing league standing of 13th as their hosts. Villarreal possess strong European pedigree though, with the 2021 UEL winners losing just one of their last nine away matches in this competition (W6, D2).
Players to watch: Rennes’ Fabian Rieder has scored in two UEL games this season, leading his team to victory in his last 12 goalscoring appearances. Aiming to eclipse him, Villarreal’s Alexander Sørloth closed the scoring in six of the last seven European matches he scored in, including the reverse H2H.
Hot streak: Rennes’ five UEL group matches have all seen the opening goal scored within 36 minutes.