Two sides separated by just three points in the bottom half of the Ligue 1 table will do battle on Sunday, as Rennes welcome Auxerre to Roazhon Park.
The two teams have both moved clear of the threat of relegation thanks to improved recent runs, with the visitors now sitting 10th and the hosts occupying 12th spot.
Match preview
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Rennes return to action at Roazhon Park on Sunday aiming to extend an upturn in form, having bounced back from a dismal first half to the season in recent months.
Following two top-four finishes and a 10th-placed finish in the last three seasons, Les Rennais sat in danger of relegation on just 17 points from 19 league outings at the end of February, having lost eight of a 10-match span dating back to November at that stage.
The club hierarchy then turned to Habib Beye to take charge, and he has inspired a major improvement at Roazhon Park, overseeing five victories in his first eight games at the helm, including four of the first five outings across February and early March.
Back-to-back defeats in tough tests against Paris Saint-Germain and Lens did then follow, but Les Rennais were able to bounce back in style on Sunday, as they visited 14th-placed Angers and picked up a 3-0 victory thanks to Arnaud Kalimuendo's brace and an Ismael Kone goal.
Having now moved up to 12th spot in Ligue 1, eight points above the bottom three and three behind their 10th-placed visitors with seven league games remaining, Stade Rennais will be keen to extend their much-improved run under the new boss towards the end of the season to continue their climb up the table.
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They face a tough test, though, with the visitors also aiming to continue their improved run and narrow their gap to Ligue 1's top half.
After a creditable start to their first season back in the French top flight, Auxerre were left on 25 points from 22 league outings on the back of a 10-game winless run dating back to early December, albeit having drawn six of those.
That left Christophe Pelissier's side 12th in mid-February, and they have since added 10 more points to their tally in their last five attempts, firstly ending the winless streak by beating Marseille 3-0, before bouncing back from a defeat to Strasbourg with a 2-0 away triumph over Reims.
The Burgundy outfit now head into the weekend in a three-match unbeaten streak, firstly following up that win with an impressive 1-1 draw away at Nice thanks to Florian Aye's 94th-minute leveller, before hosting basement side Montpellier on Sunday and taking all three points as Aye netted the only goal eight minutes from time.
Now sitting 10th and just four points outside of Ligue 1's top half with renewed confidence on their side, Auxerre will aim to make it consecutive victories and four games unbeaten in a tough trip at the weekend.
Team News
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Rennes could be unchanged from last weekend's 3-0 triumph over Angers, with Alidu Seidu, Andres Gomez and Ludovic Blas set to remain sidelined by injuries.
Arnaud Kalimuendo will continue to play a key role in the attack, having moved onto 14 goals for the season with his brace in that game, with only three players in Ligue 1 topping his tally of 13 in the French top flight, while Mohamed Kader Meite and Kazeem Olaigbe will again hope to join him despite competition from Kyogo Furuhashi.
Ismael Kone, who scored off the bench last time out, will also push to come into the midfield from the outset, but Seko Fofana and Djaoui Cisse may again get the nod, while Hans Hateboer, Anthony Rouault and Lilian Brassier are bound to continue in a back three.
Christophe Pelissier should also avoid making alterations to his Auxerre starting XI after last week's victory, with Lasso Coulibaly likely remaining their only enforced absentee through injury.
One change could come in attack, though, with Florian Aye vying for an attacking spot having come off the bench to net decisive goals in each of their last two outings.
He could join wingers Hamed Traore and Gaetan Perrin, who lead the squad with 10 and eight goals respectively this season, while 20-year-old Kevin Danois should again get the nod alongside mainstay Elisha Owusu in the centre of their 3-4-3 shape.
Rennes possible starting lineup:
Samba; Hateboer, Rouault, Brassier; Assignon, Fofana, Cisse, Truffert; Kalimuendo, Meite, Olaigbe
Auxerre possible starting lineup:
Leon; Osho, Jubal, Akpa; Hoever, Owusu, Danois, Oppegard; Perrin, Aye, Traore
We say: Rennes 2-1 Auxerre
Having finally started to show their quality under the new management of Habib Beye, we back Rennes to pick up another three-point haul with home advantage at the weekend to move above their visitors and closer to the top half.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Sam Varley
