AEK Larnaca vs Rennes Match Analysis and Prediction

4 years ago 690

Ligue 1 outfit Rennes will make the long trip to Cyprus to kick off their Europa League campaign against AEK Larnaca in Group B on Thursday.

The home side head into the contest at the AEK Larnaca Arena – Georgois Karapatakis having suffered a 3-2 league defeat to Ominia at the weekend, while Rennes could only manage a 1-1 draw with Troyes.

A second-placed finish in the Championship round of the 2021-22 Cypriot First Division presented Larnaca with the opportunity to participate in the Champions League for the first time in their history, entering the top tier of European competition in the second qualifying round.

However, they were quickly eliminated by Midtjylland before dropping to Europa League qualifying, but neither FK Partizan nor Dnipro-1 were any match for the Cypriot side as they made the group stage for just the third time ever.

Jose Luis Oltra’s side had previously reached the Europa League proper in 2011-12 and 2018-19 but unsurprisingly failed to progress to the knockout stages.

Defensive moments were the theme for Rennes in the summer transfer window, but a rearguard shake-up has not had the disired effect for the French club, who could only salvage a point against Troyes at the weekend.

Rennes have recorded two wins, two draws and two defeats from their first six matches in the 2022-23 Ligue 1 campaign, and they are still in search of their first clean sheet of the season.

Their attacking capabilities have never been questioned, and the arrival of Amine Gouiri from Nice has only strengthened the visitors in that regard as they look to build on last season’s run to the Europa Conference League last-16, where Leicester City defeated them.

Rennes appear in the Europa Legue group stage for the fourth time this year, but have only reached the knockout stages once in 2018-19.

AEK Larnaca vs Rennes head to head

The two teams have not previously met on any occasion and this will be their first meeting in the Europa League group stages.

AEK Larnaca latest home form

AEK Larnaca have recently been on a relatively good run of form at home, having lost just one of their six most recent matches. They drew 0-0 with Doxa in their last home game in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored eight goals and conceded two.

AEK Larnaca 2-0 Pafos 14/05/22

AEK Larnaca 1-1(P) Midthylland 26/07/22

AEK Larnaca 2-1 Partizan 04/08/22

AEK Larnaca 3-0 Dnipro-1 25/08/22

AEK Larnaca 0-0 Dox 29/08/22

AEK Larnaca latest away form

AEK Larnaca lost 3-2 to Omonia in their last away game in the league. However, they have recently been on a good run of form on the road, having been unbeaten in their previous eight most recent matches. In their last five matches, they have scored nine goals and conceded nine.

APOEL 2-2 AEK Larnaca 12/07/22

Midtjylland 1-1 AEK Larnaca 19/07/22

Partizan 2-2 AEK Larnaca 11/08/22

Dnipro-1 1-2 AEK Larnaca 18/08/22

Omonia Nicosia 3-2 AEK Larnaca 03/09/22

Rennes latest home form

Rennes have recently been on a relatively good run of form at home, having lost just two of their seven most recent matches. They managed to defeat Brest 3-1 in their last home game in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored eight goals and conceded five.

Rennes 2-0 Marseille 14/05/22

Rennes 1-2 Aston Villa 30/07/22

Rennes 0-1 Lorient 07/08/22

Rennes 2-1 Ajaccio 21/08/22

Rennes 3-1 Brest 31/08/22

Rennes latest away form

Rennes have recently been on a relatively good run of form on the road, having lost just one of their five most recent matches. They drew 1-1 with Troyes in their last away game in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored six goals and conceded five.

Caen 1-2 Rennes 20/07/22

Nantes 0-1 Rennes 27/07/22

Monaco 1-1 Rennes 13/08/22

Lens 2-1 Rennes 27/08/22

Troyes 1-1 Rennes 04/09/22

AEK Larnaca news

Larnaca goalkeeper Andreas Paraskevas is out for the long-term with a cruciate ligament rupture, while Bruno Gama is now fully recovered from Achilles surgery.

Olatunji came on as a substitute in the defeat to Ominia to replace Adam Gyurcso, who was taken off despite having scored a penalty only a minute beforehand.

Rennes news

Rennes’ Jeremy Doku sits on the sidelines with a muscular problem, while Warmed Omari and Arnaud Kalimuendo also take up beds in the treatment room.

Joe Rodon should start for the visitors alongside Arthur Theate and Christopher Wooh, but Birger Meling will be pushing to replace Adrien Truffert at left-back.

Prediction and Odds

Larnaca have already demonstrated a prolific run against European opposition and should experience some joy in front of goal in this contest.

Although Rennes are likely to rotate and struggle to keep things tight at the back, they still possess the attacking quality necessary to earn them a victory on Thursday.

Odds: 1 2.30 X 2.05 2 2.21