The Northerners have shown themselves to be extremely solid and realistic. The Mastiffs scored on their 2 shots on target and defensively they left little room for an opponent who remained in 13 matches without defeat in all competitions.
Jocelyn GOurvennec had decided at kick-off to leave Yilmaz and Ikoné on the bench, favoring the tenure of Weah in the right lane and Sanches in 2nd axial attacker. The Lille coach was also able to count on the return to central defense of the Dutch defender Botman, affected in the quadriceps during a match with his Dutch selection and who had not played in L1 since the victory against Marseille on October 3. .
The statement: “We do not choose our matches”
José Fonté did not like that some question the motivation of his teammates when the opponent is less famous: “It’s not the truth. Do you think that we choose the matches that we want to win? impossible. It’s amazing to know that people can think that. We want to win all the matches. Football is not logical. “
Player of the match: Sanches in all the right places
In the 31st, the Portuguese is at the start of the movement which allows the LOSC to open the scoring. He ideally shifts Weah on an aerial ball which will find Xeka thrown into the penalty area for the opener. 14 minutes later, Sanches is still at the forefront, he takes advantage of the lack of aggressiveness of the Rennes defense to score his first goal this season with a sharp strike from the right foot.
The stat: End of a series of 6 unsuccessful games in L1
Lille had not won for 6 matches in the league. The last success dated October 3 against Marseille. That evening the LOSC had won 2 goals to 0. Since then Lille has chained 2 defeats against Clermont and Paris but also 4 draws ahead of Brest Angers Monaco and Nantes.