Rennes will aim to remain in the driving seat for a podium finish in Ligue 1 when they travel to the Stade Auguste-Delaune to take on Reims on Saturday afternoon.
Bruno Genesio's side rescued a point in a 1-1 draw with Nice last time out, while the hosts fell to a dampening 1-0 defeat to Troyes.
Match preview
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Agonisingly close to leaving the Stade de l'Aube with a point to show for their efforts, the 10 men of Reims held out for nearly 40 minutes after Azor Matusiwa's red card and went close to winning it themselves through Alexis Flips's delicate backheel just wide of the post.
However, deep into second-half injury time, Renaud Ripart ensured that the extra man would count for Troyes, as the 29-year-old rifled home the only goal of the contest to quickly put a stop to Reims' five-game unbeaten run in the top flight.
Having drawn three and won two of their last five before the loss to Troyes - taking points off Monaco, Lyon and Strasbourg in that resilient streak - Reims have at least managed to stave off any brief relegation fears by rising to 13th spot in the table - nine clear of the bottom three.
Oscar Garcia's side are highly unlikely to challenge for a top-half berth now, so securing Ligue 1 status with this extremely young side with minimal fuss is the ultimate goal for the next eight matches, and they will welcome a return to home comforts this week.
Indeed, Les Rouges et Blancs have strung together a four-game unbeaten run at the Stade Auguste-Delaune - although their last three have all ended in draws - and Rennes' visit comes before a daunting run of home clashes with Lille, Marseille, Lens and Nice before the curtain closes on the campaign.
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If any side was going to stop this rampageous Rennes side enjoying another goal-laden performance, it would be Christophe Galtier's Nice, who put a stop to Les Rouge et Noir's five-game winning run in the division at the Allianz Riviera last time out.
It was a tale of two headers in the French Riviera, as Andy Delort drew first blood for Les Aiglons following a sublime cross from Youcef Atal before Martin Terrier's 17th Ligue 1 goal of the season restored parity for Bruno Genesio's side.
Very few would have put their money on Terrier rivalling Kylian Mbappe and Wissam Ben Yedder for the Ligue 1 top goalscorer's crown this term, but the 25-year-old has been at the heart of Rennes' surge for a Champions League place, and such a berth is now theirs to lose.
While Nice falter, Rennes have taken advantage to rise to third in the table and open up a two-point gap over fourth-placed Strasbourg, and the runners-up spot is not out of the question either, with Marseille only three clear of their Brittany rivals.
Scoring a whopping 21 goals in their last six Ligue 1 games, no side has found the back of the net more times than Rennes in the division - PSG have also chalked up 64 from 30 matches so far - but rather surprisingly, Les Rouge et Noir have now gone seven matches without a win against Reims after a shock 2-0 defeat at home back in September.
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Team News
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Reims midfielder Matusiwa will serve his one-match ban this weekend after being sent off for two bookable offences against Troyes, so Jens Cajuste can look forward to a recall to the midfield.
Garcia's injury problems are still evident, though, with star striker Hugo Ekitike suffering a recent setback in his recovery from a hamstring issue and being kept company in the treatment room by Arber Zeneli, El Bilal Toure, Anastasios Donis and Andreaw Gravillon.
Having seen his side score just one goal in their last three Ligue 1 games, Garcia may consider freshening up the attack with the reintroductions of Moussa Doumbia or Nathanael Mbuku this weekend.
Rennes are not exactly blessed with a full complement of options either, with attackers Jeremy Doku and Kamaldeen Sulemana not quite ready to return from their calf and back injuries just yet.
Alfred Gomis's continued absence with a broken finger signals another start for Dogan Alemdar in goal, and it is also too soon for Loic Bade (groin) and Jeremy Gelin (ACL) to take to the field again.
Barring the potential shake-up at left-back with Birger Meling pressing to replace Adrien Truffert, Genesio ought to field a largely unchanged side with the European fatigue now over following their Conference League exit to Leicester City.
Reims possible starting lineup:
Rajkovic; Busi, Abdelhamid, Faes; Foket, Cajuste, Lopy, Konan; Flips, Hornby, Mbuku
Rennes possible starting lineup:
Alemdar; Traore, Omari, Aguerd, Meling; Tait, Santamaria, Majer; Bourigeaud, Laborde, Terrier
We say: Reims 0-3 Rennes
Reims have proven to be a tough nut to crack for several top-five chasing teams in recent weeks, but their continued struggles in front of goal with Ekitike sidelined could bedevil them once again.
Genesio's Rennes need no lessons in breaking down a staunch rearguard and have enjoyed the rare luxury of a full week off, so we can only back Les Rouge et Noir to boost their Champions League hopes and end their hoodoo in this fixture with a convincing win.
Top tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Rennes win with a probability of 45.82%. A win for Reims had a probability of 27.75% and a draw had a probability of 26.4%.
The most likely scoreline for a Rennes win was 0-1 with a probability of 11.84%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (9.02%) and 0-2 (8.53%). The likeliest Reims win was 1-0 (8.71%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.53%). The actual scoreline of 2-3 was predicted with a 2.3% likelihood. Our team at Sports Mole and our data analysis both correctly predicted that Rennes would win this match.
