Leicester City vs Rennes Match Analysis and Prediction

5 years ago 666

Leicester City continue their race to win the Europa Conference League with the first leg of their last-16 tie with Rennes on Thursday night.

The hosts are currently sitting 12th in the Premier League standings, while Rennes occupy fourth place in Ligue 1.

Having once suggested that he had not been paying attention to the workings of the Europa Conference League, it came across that Brendan Rodgers was not the biggest fan of another continental competition being added to the schedule.

However, it has aided the Foxes’ squad in their efforts to find some form, the 4-1 victory over Randers on February 17 the first of four wins from five matches.

The level of opposition has not been impressive, but there was new-found resilience about how Brendan’s side kept a clean sheet against Leeds United at the weekend.

Leicester are still sitting 12 points adrift of seventh-placed Tottenham Hotspur, and are unlikely to secure European football through the Premier League, increasing the importance of the Thursday’s contest.

The Foxes eventually prevailed 7-2 on aggregate in the previous round with James Maddison and Harvey Barnes scoring two goals each against their Danish opponents.

Meanwhile, Rennes missed out on a trip to England earlier this season when their fixture at Tottenham Hotspur was postponed due to coronavirus cases in the opposition ranks.

However, in registering a 2-2 draw in the reverse fixture, Genesio’s side showed that they have enough quality to make this a 50-50 tie, particularly now that they are competing for second spot in Ligue 1.

Five victories from seven Ligue 1 matches have left Rennes just three points adrift on Nice, and they will have high hopes of earning a return to the Champions League for 2022-23.

Rennes have been unbeaten in their seven games in this competition, scoring 15 goals during those fixtures.

Leicester City vs Rennes head to head

The two clubs have not previously met in any occasion and this will be the first time they will be meeting in a competitive match.

Leicester City latest home form

Leicester have recently been on a good run of form at home, as they have been unbeaten in their four most recent matches. They recently managed to defeat Randers 4-1 in the Europa Conference League. In their last five, they have scored 10 goals and conceded seven in the process.

Leicester City 2-3 Tottenham Hotspur 19/01/22

Leicester City 1-1 Brighton & Hove Albion 23/01/22

Leicester City 2-2 West Ham United 13/02/22

Leicester City 4-1 Randers 17/02/22

Leicester City 1-0 Leeds United 05/03/22

Leicester City latest away form

The Foxes have most recently been on a good form on the road, having won each of their two most recent matches. They recently managed to defeat Randers 3-1 in Europa Conference League. In their last five matches, they have won two and lost three, scoring seven and conceding nine.

Nottingham Forest 4-1 Leicester City 06/02/22

Liverpool 2-0 Leicester City 10/02/22

Wolverhampton Wanderers 2-1 Leicester City 20/02/22

Randers 1-3 Leicester City 24/02/22

Burnley 0-2 Leicester City 01/03/22

Rennes latest home form

Rennes have recently been on a good run of form at home, having been unbeaten in their five most recent matches. They managed to defeat Lorient 1-0 in the Coupe de France on December 18. In their last five matches, they have scored 15 goals and conceded just one.

Rennes 1-0 Lorient 18/12/21

Rennes 6-0 Bordeaux 16/01/22

Rennes 2-0 Brest 06/02/22

Rennes 4-1 Troyes 20/02/22

Rennes 2-0 Angers 06/03/22

Rennes latest away form

Rennes have been on a poor run of form on the road, as they have won just one of their six most recent away matches. However, they managed to defeat Montpellier 4-2 in their last league away game. In their last five matches, they have scored six goals and conceded seven.

Nancy (P)1-1 Rennes 02/01/22

Lens 1-0 Rennes 08/01/22

Clermont 2-1 Rennes 23/01/22

PSG 1-0 Rennes 11/02/22

Montpellier 2-4 Rennes 25/02/22

Leicester City news

Rodgers has the option of recalling Jannik Vestergaard and using Daniel Amartey in a wider role, but the versatile defender may not be moved having kept a clean sheet at the weekend.

Meanwhile, Kelechi Iheanacho, Ademola Lookman and Patson Daka are all pushing for a spot in the final third.

Rennes news

Genesio may be prepared to name a similar side that defeated Angers, and the likes of Jeremy Doku are in contention for a recall on Thursday.

However, Lovro Majer(hamstring), Loic Bade(groin), Lesley Ugochukwu(ankle), Romain Salin(calf), Kamal-Deen Sulemana(back) and Jeremy Gelin(ACL) are all sidelined with injuries.