PLAYER RATINGS | Nantes 0-3 Rennes: Bretons humiliate rivals in one-sided derby | OneFootball

Lige 1 gameweek 30, 20/04/22

Nantes hosted struggling Brittany rivals Rennes to seal a second consecutive Ligue 1 win which would bring them closer to safety. Antoine Kombouaré’s Canaris started with poise and intensity, winning the overwhelming majority of their duels. However, the hosts were hampered by a general lack of quality going forward, a domain in which Rennes had the clear upper hand. Kombouaré was forced to rethink when defensive midfielder Douglas Augusto pulled out with an injury. The Brazilian made way for left-winger Kader Bamba, who scored a vital injury-time winner against Le Havre last week.

Rennes left-winger, exciting 18-year-old prospect Désiré Doué, went inches from the opener, his brilliant curler palmed by Alban Lafont on his crossbar and post. Doué’s effort proved to be the clearest goalscoring opportunity of a rather dour first half in which both teams lacked precision and ideas in the final third. For instance, Les Rouge et Noir had more bookings than shots on target in the first 45 minutes.

The visitors upped the ante in the second half, but they were still not clinical enough whilst Nantes were more than happy to rely on high balls and counter-attacks. At the hour mark, Les Canaris only ventured once in Steve Mandanda’s penalty box. Rennes were rewarded for their intent. Arnaud Kalimuendo flew past Jean-Charles Castelletto to blast home Guéla Doué’s inviting cross from the right.

A ninth home loss on the bounce for Nantes

Ten minutes later, Castelletto made a mess of the offside trap, allowing Kalimuendo to dribble past Lafont before being fouled by the goalkeeper. Willy Delajod rightfully pointed to the spot for substitute Benjamin Bourigeaud to double his side’s lead. Nantes could have hoped for a grandstand finish, but Mandanda pulled off a stupendous save to prevent Mostafa Mohamed from halving the deficit. Amine Gouiri combined effortlessly with Doué to put the cherry on the cake and score Les Rouge et Noir’s third goal.

Rennes’ streak of bad results ended on their rivals’ turf, allowing them to maintain a glimmer of hope to qualify for Europe. As for Nantes, Les Canaris are to brace themselves for another nervy finale, their Ligue 1 fate hanging in the balance. They have lost their last nine games at home.

Nantes players ratings

Alban Lafont, 3

Kelvin Amian, 4

Jean-Charles Castelletto, 3

Nicolas Pallois, 5

Nicolas Cozza, 3

Pedro Chirivella, 4

The former Liverpool midfielder is badly struggling this season, failing to display the same technical level or passing quality we were accustomed to from the Spaniard. Booked for a cynical foul on Amine Gouiri.

Douglas Augusto, N/A

The Brazilian midfielder called time before the half-hour mark and limped off the pitch. He was replaced by Kader Bamba, who had very little influence on proceedings.

Samuel Moutoussamy, 3

Florent Mollet, 4

Moussa Sissoko, 5

Mostafa Mohamed, 4

Rennes players ratings

Steve Mandanda, 6

Guéla Doué, 5

Warmed Omari, 5

Christopher Wooh, 5

Jeanuël Belocian, 5

Ludovic Blas, 4

Azor Matusiwa, 5

Baptiste Santamaria, 6

Désiré Doué, 7

Not for the first time recently, the left-winger was his team’s most potent attacking outlet for most of the game, which speaks volumes considering Doué is only 18. Could have scored a worldie if not for Lafont’s fingertips save. Showed great composure to assist Gouiri for Rennes’ third in injury time.

Arnaud Kalimuendo, 7

The France U21 centre-forward showed tenacity and instinct to rifle past Lafont at the hour mark. He did not stop there and got the Nantes defense napping in making contact with the onrushing Lafont, paving the way for Bourigeaud’s penalty. From then on, Rennes were out of sight.

Martin Terrier, 4

GFFN | Bastien Cheval