Rennes take on Metz in Ligue 1 on Wednesday, with the hosts able to move into a top-four position with a victory.
The visitors will be no pushovers, however, having won their last two matches without conceding a goal to move back into the top half of the table.
Match preview
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Having qualified for the Champions League for the first time in the club's history after being in third place last season prior to the curtailment of all French football due to the coronavirus pandemic, Rennes are looking like being in the mix for a top-three position once again.
Admittedly Julien Stephan's side were huge disappointments in Europe's elite competition, though, finishing bottom of their group with just one point from six games. However, domestically they have been consistent once again, taking 28 points from 16 matches.
While Stephan would be unlikely to publicly admit this, Rennes may well benefit from exiting European competition altogether having avoided dropping into the Europa League.
The club already appear to be benefitting from the lack of distraction, having won three consecutive league matches since the loss to Sevilla earlier this month, with seven different goalscorers and just one goal conceded in those three wins showing the amount of quality the club possesses.
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Metz, meanwhile, have picked up again after the long-term injury to top goalscorer Ibrahima Niane appeared to have finally caught up with them during a winless run of five matches.
After Niane scored six goals in Metz's opening six matches, it took a long time for any other player in Metz's squad to even reach two league goals for the season after Niane's serious ligament injury, but the likes of Farid Boulaya and Opa Nguette have finally stepped up in recent weeks.
The duo were both on target in Saturday's 2-0 win against Lens, with Frederic Antonetti's side as defensively disciplined as ever.
Indeed, only the four sides currently occupying Ligue 1's top four positions have a better defensive record so far this season, which has been a major reason as to why Niane's injury has proved damaging rather than fatal in terms of the negative impact on the team.
Rennes Ligue 1 form: LDLWWW
Metz Ligue 1 form: DLDDWW
Team News
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Rennes have a host of injury concerns to deal with, with Flavien Tait, Georginio Rutter, Romain Del Castillo, Alfred Gomis, Sehrou Guirassy, Jonas Martin and Daniele Rugani all doubtful for the visit of Metz.
Given the quick turnaround between fixtures, Stephan may look to utilise M'Baye Niang from the start after the former AC Milan forward was only used from the substitutes' bench in the win at Lorient.
Metz, meanwhile, are likely to be without Niane and Manuel Cabit for the entire season with serious knee injuries.
Vincent Pajot, Kevin N'Doram and Matthieu Udol are also doubtful for the trip to Rennes, with Antonetti unlikely to change too much after an impressive win against Lens.
Rennes possible starting lineup:
Salin; Traore, Da Silva, Aguerd, Maouassa; Doku, Bourigeaud, N'Zonzi, Camavinga, Truffert; Niang
Metz possible starting lineup:
Oukidja; Bronn, Kouyate, Boye; Centonze, Angban, Maiga, Delaine; Boulaya; Nguette, Yade
We say: Rennes 1-0 Metz
With Rennes coming back into form since exiting the Champions League, we can envisage a fourth successive victory for Stephan's side.
Metz will certainly be no pushovers, though, boasting an excellent defensive record this season, but may lack a little bit of quality in transition without Niane.
Top betting 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 54.21%. A draw had a probability of 25.3% and a win for Metz had a probability of 20.52%.
The most likely scoreline for a Rennes win was 1-0 with a probability of 13.74%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-0 (10.84%) and 2-1 (9.36%). The likeliest drawn scoreline was 1-1 (11.85%), while for a Metz win it was 0-1 (7.52%). The actual scoreline of 1-0 was predicted with a 13.7% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted a 1-0 win for Rennes in this match.
