Rennes claimed a 2-1 win away at Angers in Ligue 1, the third round of the regular season at the Stade Raymond Kopa on Saturday. The result leaves the visitors fourth on seven points while the hosts drop to twelfth with three.
Frankowski opened the scoring for Rennes in the ninth minute, and then Lefort turned the tie around with an own goal seventeen minutes in. Arcus pulled Angers level with a goal of his own in the thirty-fifth. That was the last of the goals, and here's the thing — the match never really settled after that.
Both sides made heavy substitutions in the second half. Bermont came on for Angers at the break, while Al-Tamari and Merlin replaced two Rennes players sixty-eight minutes in. Further changes followed for both sides, including Szymański and Blas for Angers in the seventy-seventh minute, and Lepaul for Rennes at the eighty-ninth.
Cresswell picked up a yellow card for Rennes in the fifty-eighth minute, and Kalulu was booked for Angers at 90+3. Neither side sent anyone off, and the disciplinary tally stayed light throughout.
Angers dominated possession at 44 per cent but struggled to convert. They registered three shots on target from twelve attempts inside the penalty area, while their expected goals figure sat at 1.69. Rennes had 56 per cent possession and hit the target five times from fifteen attempts inside the box, with an expected goals total of 1.36.
The win moves Rennes up to fourth with seven points after three games, while Angers remain twelfth with just three. We had backed the home side at 42 per cent confidence, but the match went the other way — an own goal and a clinical finish from Rennes broke the forecast.
