Stade Rennais suffered, doubted for a long time but finally saw the light in the cold and after the rain that had watered Roazhon Park in the evening. Thursday, November 4, for the 4th day of the Europa League Conference, Rennes did the minimum service but provided the essentials by winning against NS Mura (1-0), the weakest team in group G of which the Bretons remain leaders. The deliverance came from Loïc Badé, head, at the start of the last quarter of an hour.
Bruno Genesio had announced the tenure of the former Lensois at the pre-match press conference on Wednesday. He was not the only regular replacement to start the meeting, since the Rennes coach has largely changed his starting XI compared to the draw obtained in Troyes on Sunday (2-2). With six new players on the pitch. Romain Salin in the goals, Lorenz Assignon and Adrien Truffert on the sides, Baptiste Santamaria and Lovro Majer in the middle, Sehrou Guirassy in front and therefore the savior of an evening, Loïc Badé.
The central defender had not been able to start a game since September 30 and a victory against Vitesse (2-1) where he had ended up sent off for two yellow cards. Symbol of a player lacking in confidence. He then sat regularly on the bench to give way to Warmed Omari, watching his teammates string together victories without regularly treading the lawn, if not for half an hour, on October 17, against Metz (3-0) .
“He’s a player who struggled at one point, but reacted, he showed tonight that he was ready”, rejoiced Bruno Génésio after the game. “It is sure that these are quite complicated beginnings, “added the central defender. On Thursday, he was the main actor and his teammates, as well as the large crowd despite the absence of the main group of supporters (the RCK), can thank him.
The match had just entered its last quarter of an hour, Guirassy left his partners under the whistles fed from Roazhon Park. Then, in the seconds that followed, Loïc Badé resumed with his head a free kick offered by Lovro Majer to finally force the Slovenian lock (76th). “This is my first professional goal for me so there were a lot of emotions. I waited for him “, he admitted after the match.
That the offering comes from the Croatian is hardly surprising, as it was so sparkling for his first tenure since his arrival in Brittany. He shone in the midfield thanks to his precise and silky left foot, without frills.
“This is not to make a spin, it is to give the chance to those who play a little less or do not play to show themselves in an important game for the qualification”, Bruno Genesio explained before the meeting. Among these, Badé and Majer are the only ones to have really scored points, with the objective of instilling doubt in the mind of their trainer for his next compositions. Both were involved in the first two big chances of the game. Lovro Majer found Nayef Aguerd on a corner, who uncrossed his head too much (3rd). A few minutes later, Loïc Badé forced Matko Obradovic, the Slovenian goalkeeper, to work (8th). A penalty for a foul on Adrien Truffert could also have been whistled in the seconds following this big opportunity.
Defensively, the Reds and Blacks were rarely endangered except after the opening of the scoring. “After the goal, Rennes retreated and we had a few opportunities”, recognized the Slovenian coach, Ante Simundza. With their backs to the wall, NS Mura was forced to go on the offensive in front of their dozen or so supporters massed outside the parking lot reserved for visitors.
Yet associated with Nayef Aguerd – while the pair had not really worked at the start of the season – Loïc Badé has shown that he has not lost confidence. He showed serenity on his rare interventions but also confidence, which was not obvious for a player now accustomed to the sidelines and who had to digest, for his young age, a significant transfer of around 20 million euros.
In any case, he scored his first goal under the Rennes colors allowing his club to keep the lead of group G ahead of Tottenham, winner of Vitesse Arnhem (3-2). Before concluding his evening by directing the famous clapping in front of Breton supporters.