TOPS/FLOPS – Stade Rennais defeated OL 3-0 in the opening match of Ligue 1 McDonalds at Roazhon Park on Sunday evening.
TOPS
Amine Gouiri ever-present
Playing against OL was an extra motivation for Gouiri. Trained at Olympique Lyonnais but sold to Nice without having had the chance to shine with his boyhood club, Amine Gouiri, now at Stade Rennais, immediately showed he was in the right tempo for this match. After a good one-two with Assignon right from the first minute, he continued to stand out by testing Perri’s gloves before capitalizing on a mistake from Niakhaté to score his first goal of the season. Less visible at the beginning of the second half, the Algerian international managed to show up again, but without success.
Gronbaek, Meister, Kamara… The Rennes recruits start (very) well
While Léo Ostigard, the new central defender, showed some speed issues in his defensive interventions, Glenn Kamara and Albert Gronbaek both secured their first official outing in the Breton jersey. We remember that vertical pass from the former that found the latter in the first half, to show that the adaptation was going well. The understanding with Blas and Gouiri also worked well. And what can be said about Henrik Meister? The young Danish recruit, coming from Norway, scored with his very first touch. His curled shot, low to the ground, left Lucas Perri with no chance. The Lyon goalkeeper had saved others but was beaten this time.
Julien Stéphan’s perfect plan
He also started his season well. The coach of Stade Rennais, who returned to the Rennes bench during last season, successfully outmaneuvered the plans of Pierre Sage, the OL coach. By tightening his lines at the start of the match, Stéphan also asked his players to exploit the spaces behind the Rennes defense. We saw numerous times how Mandanda quickly launched from his area towards Gouiri or Blas who were heading for the opponent’s goal. He also brought in his new attacking recruit Meister (20 years old) who capped off the Rennes success.
Also readLigue 1: Stade Rennais much stronger than OL
FLOPS
Mikautdaze, the nightmare at Roazhon Park
Back at home, at his boyhood club, Mikautadze had a poor first outing. The former Metz forward didn’t make enough of an impact on the match. If he was used to playing in a team that didn’t hold onto the ball, he will need to adapt to OL’s style. He often lacked the clarity to serve his teammates at the right tempo, like Nuamah, who was unmarked in the first half. He had the chance to get his team back into the game with a penalty a quarter of the way from the end, but his shot reflected his nervous performance.
Niakhaté, 30 million euros, really?
A very complicated debut for Senegalese defender Moussa Niakhaté. Arriving for more than 30 million euros from Nottingham Forest, he gave cold sweats to his teammates and OL supporters. After conceding the first goal, Niakhaté caused the second. The Lyon number 19 failed to make a secure pass to Perri and saw Gouiri come in to take the ball and deliver another blow to the heads of the Lyonnais. They never recovered after that. It’s just the first match, and his solidity could be confirmed in the coming weeks, but this initial appearance in the white jersey leaves a mark.
SEE ALSO – The beautiful lob goal by Minamino with Monaco against Saint-Étienne on August 17 (1-0)
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