Rennes vs AEK Larnaca Match Analysis and Prediction

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Rennes will need a positive result on matchday six when they afce AEK Larnaca at Roazhon Park on Thursday, in order to keep their hope of moving directly into the Europa League round of 16 alive.

The hosts are unbeaten in seven consecutive European home matches but trail Fenerbahce by a single goal for first place in Group B, while the only victory for the visitors in the group came away at Dynamo Kyiv.

While they are guaranteed of at least a spot in the knockout stage playoffs, Rennes missed a golden chance to move into top spot in Group B on matchday five.

Bruno Genesio’s side surprised Fenerbahce in Istanbul early on, taking a 3-0 lead after just a half an hour, but they failed to put the match to bed, conceding twice in the final 10 minutes to play out a 3-3 draw.

That was the second time that Rennes had squandered a multiple-goal lead in the Europa League group stage and failed to win, with the first time they had dropped points when holding a second-half advantage being against Marseille in a 1-1 draw September fixture.

AEK Larnaca may not be going into the next round of this competition, but they can be very proud of how they have competed in the group stage.

They have given their superior opponents all they can handle, losing two matches by a single goal, while an own goal from Rafail Mamas ended any hopes of a comeback for them on matchday three against Fenerbahce.

Jose Luis Oltra saw his side squander a 3-1 lead to Dynamo Kyiv in their previous Europa League game, conceding twice in the final 10 minutes plus stoppage time, drawing 3-3. However, they have assured themselves of a spot in the Europa Conference League despite that result.

Rennes vs AEK Larnaca head to head

These two teams have previously met on just one occasion in the Europa League on September 8, where Rennes claimed a 2-1 away victory.

AEK Larnaca 1-2 Rennes 08/09/22

Rennes latest home form

Rennes have recently been on a good run of form at home, as they have been unbeaten in their eight most recent matches. They managed to defeat Montpellier 3-0 in their last home game in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored 13 goals and conceded five.

Rennes 2-2 Fenerbahce 15/09/22

Rennes 2-1 Dinamo Kiev 06/10/22

Rennes 3-0 Nantes 09/10/22

Rennes 3-2 Lyon 16/10/22

Rennes 3-0 Montpellier 30/10/22

Rennes latest away form

Rennes have recently been on a good run of form on the road, having been unbeaten in their seven most recent matches. They played out a 3-3 draw with Fenerbahce in their last away game in the Europa League. In their last five matches, they have scored 10 goals and conceded six.

Marseille 1-1 Rennes 18/09/22

Strasbourg 1-3 Rennes 01/10/22

Dinamo Kiev 0-1 Rennes 13/10/22

Angers 1-2 Rennes 23/10/22

Fenerbahce 3-3 Rennes 27/10/22

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 managed to defeat Karmiotissa 4-0 in their last home game in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored 16 goals and conceded seven.

AEK Larnaca 4-0 Anorthosis 01/10/22

AEK Larnaca 1-2 Fenerbahce 13/10/22

AEK Larnaca 4-2 Olympiakos Nicosia 17/10/22

AEK Larnaca 3-3 Dinamo Kiev 27/10/22

AEK Larnaca 4-0 Karmiotissa 30/10/22

AEK Larnaca latest away form

AEK Larnaca have recently failed to keep a good run of form on the road, having won just two of their six most recent matches. They lost 1-0 to APOEL in their last away game in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored three goals and conceded five.

Dinamo Kiev 0-1 AEK Larnaca 15/09/22

Pafos 1-0 AEK Larnaca 18/09/22

Fenerbahce 2-0 AEK Larnaca 06/10/22

Aris Limassol 1-2 AEK Larnaca 09/10/22

APOEL 1-0 AEK Larnaca 22/10/22

Rennes news

Amine Gouiri scored a brace and Martin Terrier netted as well on matchday five, as the Rennes duo have been directly involved in four goals in the Europa League this season.

Lorenz Assignon scored the winner in their previous game against AEK, while Steve Mandanda picked up a clean sheet at the wekend.

AEK Larnaca news

Omri Altman has scored five goals in his last two games in all competitions for Larnaca, scoring a hat-trick this weekend in a 4-0 win domestically against Karmiotissa.

Angel Garcia missed their game against Dinamo Kiev through suspension, with Nikos Englezou replacing him, with Pere Pons also brought into the starting lineup.

Prediction and Odds

AEK Larnaca have proven that they can compete at this level of football, but they are likely not to be a threat to Rennes in this one.

It is hard to the visitors being able to shut out a side with so many weapons in the attaicking third, scoring in 17 consecutive matches across all competitions.

Odds: 1 1.78 X 2.10 2 3.12