Rennes 3-0 Strasbourg: Sebastian Szymanski scores twice to send leaders top
Boulaye Dia opened the scoring before Sebastian Szymanski struck either side of half-time, as league leaders Rennes beat Strasbourg 3-0 at Roazhon Park despite having less of the ball all night.
Rennes did not need the ball to beat Strasbourg. Boulaye Dia opened the scoring in the 34th minute, Sebastian Szymanski doubled it four minutes before the break and added a third early in the second half, and Rennes won 3-0 at Roazhon Park while finishing with less possession than their opponents. It sends the home side top of Ligue 1.
Dia breaks the deadlock, Szymanski does the rest
Przemyslaw Frankowski supplied the pass for Dia's opener in the 34th minute, and Rennes struck again before half-time: Mahamadou Nagida teed up Szymanski in the 41st minute to make it 2-0 at the break. Szymanski was not done — he added a second of his own, assisted by Mousa Al-Tamari, in the 61st minute to put the game beyond Strasbourg's reach with half an hour still to play. Strasbourg could not find a response, and the only cards of note were four yellows shown across the 90 minutes, three of them to the visitors.
- 34' — Boulaye Dia (Rennes), assisted by Przemyslaw Frankowski
- 41' — Sebastian Szymanski (Rennes), assisted by Mahamadou Nagida
- 61' — Sebastian Szymanski (Rennes), assisted by Mousa Al-Tamari
A clean sheet without dominating the ball
The scoreline flatters Rennes' control of the game less than it might suggest — Strasbourg actually had more of the possession, 53.4% to 46.6%, and more corners, five to two. Rennes were simply the sharper side in the moments that mattered, taking three of their five shots on target and conceding nothing at the other end, a defensive performance that stands out given how little of the ball they had to work with.
| Stat | Rennes | Strasbourg |
|---|---|---|
| Possession | 46.6% | 53.4% |
| Shots on target | 5 | 4 |
| Pass accuracy | 398 (83.6%) | 436 (81.3%) |
| Corners | 2 | 5 |
| Fouls conceded | 10 | 17 |
| Yellow cards | 1 | 3 |
Line-ups
| Team | Starting XI |
|---|---|
| Rennes (5-3-2) | Samba; Cresswell, Rouault, Aït Boudlal, Nagida, Frankowski; Rongier, Camara, Szymanski; Al-Tamari, Dia |
| Strasbourg (4-2-3-1) | Jørgensen; Coulibaly, Mitchell, Oso, Antwi; Sousa, Essugo; Diop, Harder, Reyna; Yassine |
Rennes move top, Strasbourg stay in trouble
The win puts Rennes top of Ligue 1 on 16 points, one point clear of Lille and Monaco, bouncing back from a 4-3 defeat at Paris FC last time out — a result that had itself followed a 4-1 win over Auxerre and a heavy 0-4 defeat at Lyon earlier in October. Strasbourg's defeat is their fourth in a row in the league, following losses to Paris FC, Nice and PSG, and leaves them 16th with 7 points and a goal difference of -6, inside the relegation play-off zone.
What's next
Rennes will look to hold on to top spot as Lille and Monaco chase from level on points just behind them. Strasbourg, four defeats running and sliding towards the bottom three, need a response before the losing streak becomes a relegation fight they cannot pull out of.
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