The less they talk about it, the better they are. Asked about the possibility of aiming for the podium this season during each of the last press conferences, Bruno Genesio and his players assure him: they do not look at the standings. “We will make a first assessment at the break“the Rennes coach has often repeated. But as the reception of Nice looms, a possible direct opponent for European places, it is difficult not to look ahead to the rest of the season, although ambitions remain hidden at this stage. To live happy, live hidden.
Content rather than ranking
“The objective, as I have often said, is not to be on the podium at the truce, it is to continue to take points, explains Bruno Genesio. We have to develop our game, progress in our game, because we still have a lot of areas for improvement. We must continue our journey without looking at the standings. I think the biggest mistake to make is this, is to think that we are going to be second or third at the break, and then start to think about that before thinking about the content of the matches, and the means to be implemented to win the matches. “Faced with Niçois deprived of Andy Delort (suspended) as well as Bambu and Kamara, Rennes will have to do their part without Flavien Tait, Birger Meling and Jérémy Doku, still unavailable. Mistrust, the Niçois are revenge: they do not ‘ have won just one of their last five Ligue 1 games.
The curse of the second
Another statistic has something to make the Rennes people suspicious. Since the 5th day of Ligue 1, the team ranked second before the start of a new day has never managed to win. They conceded ten defeats for three draws. Rennes had paid the price against Lille (1-2). And this statistic does not surprise Bruno Genesio that much: “I think it’s not just luck. There are a lot of teams that are very close to each other, and none of those teams have taken the leadership behind PSG. For lack of regularity, there can be plenty of factors. And maybe one of those factors is saying “we’re second” and putting yourself a little negative pressure on that second place. I often tell players that the ranking is anecdotal until three, four games from the end. If at that point you are second or third, it’s different, you can start talking about the podium or the Champions League. There are twenty-one games left to play, the standings mean absolutely nothing. However, what does mean something is the quality of the game we offer. It is certainly thanks to this that we will be able to be in continuity if we keep this requirement and this level.“Add to this” curse “the fact that Rennes has not won since April 2015 at home against Nice. Rationalists will be reassured with the team’s exceptional level of play this season, and its points capital after 17 matches. And it is already a lot.