Rennes and Nice will be looking to return to winning ways in Ligue 1 when they lock horns at the Roazhon Park on Monday night.
After a near six-week break for the World Cup, Les Rouge et Noir were beaten by Reims on their return to top-flight action, while the Eaglets shared the spoils with Lens.
Match preview
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Rennes saw their impressive 17-game unbeaten run across all competitions come to an end at the hands of Reims in their final game of 2022 as they were beaten 3-1 away from home last Friday.
After Folarin Balogun and Alexis Flips had put Reims two goals in front, Arthur Theate pulled one back for Rennes on the stroke of half time, but the hosts secured all three points when Balogun netted his second in the 84th minute, condemning Les Rouge et Noir to their first defeat since August 27.
Bruno Genesio's side have subsequently slipped down to fourth in the Ligue 1 table, but they still remain in contention to qualify for the Champions League, with just two points separating them from Marseille in third.
Les Rouge et Noir, who have lost three of their last four matches played in January, will be keen to bounce back quickly in their quest for a top-three place, and they will be optimistic of securing maximum points in front of their own fans on Monday after winning 15 league games on home soil in 2022, more than any other team across Europe's top-five leagues.
However, an encounter with Nice could prove challenging for Genesio and co as they have failed to win any of their last seven Ligue 1 meetings with the Eaglets and have also lost five of their last seven top-flight home games against them.
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Nice have failed to live up to expectations following a busy summer of spending in the transfer market, but Lucien Favre's side have shown signs of improvement in recent months and have put together an eight-game unbeaten run across all competitions.
The Eaglets played out a goalless stalemate with high-flying Lens on Thursday, their fourth draw in their last six league matches, and they currently sit ninth in the top-flight standings, eight points clear of the relegation zone and nine behind the European positions.
While Favre can take positives from last week's draw with Lens, the result has highlighted Nice's struggles in front of goal; indeed the Riviera-based outfit have scored the joint-fewest goals in Ligue 1 so far this season, netting just 15 times in 16 games along with Ajaccio and Angers.
Nice have, however, found the net in each of their last six Ligue 1 away matches and scored twice in each of their previous three visits to Rennes, winning on each occasion, which bodes well for them heading into Monday's contest.
Team News
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Rennes midfielder Baptiste Santamaria is ahead of schedule in his recover from an ankle injury, but Monday's fixture will come too soon for the 27-year-old, while fringe players Desire Doue and Lorenz Assignon are both doubtful and will be assessed ahead of kickoff.
Lovro Majer is set to return to the first-team fold after being granted extra time off following his World Cup exploits with Croatia, and the playmaker could join Lesley Ugochukwu and Benjamin Bourigeaud in a three-man midfield, which would see Flavien Tait drop to the bench.
Attacking trio Martin Terrier, Arnaud Kalimuendo and Amine Gouiri, who have scored 16 goals between them so far this term, are expected to retain their places in the first XI.
As for Nice, Marcin Bulka and Youcef Atal remain out with respective shoulder and ankle injuries, but Mattia Viti has recovered from a groin problem and is available to face Rennes.
It remains to be seen whether Aaron Ramsey will feature in the matchday squad after missing the draw with Lens last time out, and should the Welshman miss out again, Hicham Boudaoui, Khephren Thuram and Mario Lemina will all compete for a place in centre-midfield.
Ross Barkley, Nicolas Pepe and Gaetan Laborde will all be hoping to keep their places in attack, although Andy Delort and Sofiane Diop will be pushing for a starting berth.
Rennes possible starting lineup:
Mandanda; Traore, Omari, Theate, Truffert; Bourigeaud, Ugochukwu, Majer; Terrier, Kalimuendo, Gouiri
Nice possible starting lineup:
Schmeichel; Todibo, Dante, Rosario; Lotomba, Thuram, Lemina, Bard; Pepe, Laborde, Barkley
We say: Rennes 1-1 Nice
There has been little to separate these two sides in recent meetings and another closely-fought contest could be on the cards on Monday.
Rennes will fancy their chances on home soil, but we can see Nice extending their unbeaten run by earning a hard-fought point at the Roazhon Park.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
