Ligue 1 2019/20: Rennes vs Angers – tactical analysis

Rennes and Angers met in the 17th fixture of Ligue 1 at Roazhon Park on Saturday. The home side ran out victorious in what proved to be a rather drab match last weekend.

Rennes have slowly regained their form after a slump midway through the first half of the season. Theyve won four out of their last five matches and were looking to continue their fine run with a win against Angers at home.

And they duly did. This win against Angers brought Rennes up to fourth place in the Ligue 1 table.

Angers, on the flip side, were very impressive earlier in the season. But three losses in a row (including against Rennes) meant that theyd fall down from eighth to 12th place in the table albeit previously managing to stay in the top three for a while.

This tactical analysis will look into both teams tactics and approach in the game in a detailed manner.

Lineups

Julien Stéphan deployed his team in a familiar 4-4-2 formation in this game. Minimal changes could be seen, both tactically and in terms of personnel. Jordan Siebatcheu and Eduardo Camavinga were both benched in this game. Meanwhile, MBaye Niang and James Lea Siliki both started the game as a striker and central midfielder respectively.

Stéphane Moulin also made little changes to his team following their 0-2 defeat against Marseille. They still played in a 4-1-4-1 system with nine players maintaining their spot in the starting 11. Théo Pellenard and Mathias Pereira Lage both came into the starting lineup, replacing Rayan Aït-Nouri and Sada Thioub respectively.

Rennes reliance on quick breaks

Les Rouge et Noirs game plan in the build-up seemed rather unclear. What seemed consistent in their play when on the ball was that they built their play up from the back and that theyd mainly try to combine through the middle by playing passes in between the lines.