Comments and predictions for Rennes vs Marseille: Falling into a trap right at home

Latest Rennes vs Marseille team information

Rennes centre-back Lilian Brassier missed the last friendly through injury and remains doubtful, despite signing from Brest on a permanent basis. Quentin Merlin and Valentin Rongier – both new signings from Marseille – are expected to make their debuts, while Galatasaray loan full-back Przemyslaw Frankowski is also available. Rennes, on the other hand, have parted ways with Kyogo Furuhashi after just half a year, along with Azor Matusiwa and Kazeem Olaigbe. Expensive new signing Igor Paixao (from Feyenoord) is yet to make his debut due to injury.

For Marseille, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang returns after a season in Saudi Arabia and will be hoping to replicate his 17-goal haul in 2023-24, alongside Mason Greenwood – Ligue 1’s joint top scorer last season. Two loan signings – defender Facundo Medina (from Lens) and Timothy Weah (following in the footsteps of his father George Weah) – could also feature from the start.

Latest expected lineup Rennes vs Marseille

Rennes:

Samba; Faye, Jacquet, Rouault; Frankowski, Fofana, Cisse, Rongier, Merlin; Tamari, Meite

Marseille:

Rulli; Murillo, Medina, Balerdi, Garcia; Hojbjerg, Rabiot, Gomes; Greenwood, Aubameyang, Gouiri

Latest football review Rennes vs Marseille

After four consecutive seasons (2019-20 to 2022-23) of finishing in the top six, Rennes have spent two seasons in the bottom half of Ligue 1, with last season being their worst in more than a decade.

The appointment of Jorge Sampaoli at the start of the 2024-25 season backfired, forcing the club to spend big in the January transfer window and bring in Habib Beye to avoid relegation. Rennes secured early relegation, but 12th place was unacceptable for a team accustomed to competing for European football.

Beye have made a positive impact, winning 8/15 games at the end of the season – enough form to compete for the top if maintained throughout the season. The goal of a quick start is the top priority, especially when Rennes have won both of their recent opening games, despite only winning 1/6 in the recent summer friendlies. The challenge awaiting them in round 1 is Marseille – a team that has beaten Rennes in 4/5 recent encounters, including both matches last season (OM won 4-2 in the final round).

That victory saw Roberto De Zerbi finish his first season in charge of Marseille in second place, doing as much as he could with Paris Saint-Germain 19 points clear. That was a huge improvement on the 2023-24 campaign when they finished eighth and missed out on Europe, while also securing a Champions League spot.

Closing the gap on PSG – widely regarded as the strongest team in Ligue 1 history – is a daunting task, but Marseille can take advantage of a strong start after a good preparation period, while their opponents are busy with the FIFA Club World Cup. Marseille have won their opening games in each of the last five seasons and beat Aston Villa 3-1 in a friendly last weekend, so they are feeling confident.

Latest Rennes vs Marseille score prediction

Based on the above football comments, we and the world's leading football sites have given the results of the match.Rennes vs Marseilleas follows:

• Sportsmole:Rennes 1-2 Marseille

• WhoScore:Rennes 1-3 Marseille
• Our newspaper predicts:Rennes 1-3 Marseille

When and where to watch Rennes vs Marseille live?

To watch the live match Rennes vs Marseille in Ligue 1 taking place at 1:45 a.m. on August 16, viewers can watch onK+ Sport,K+PMor online sports channels. Wish you have fun watching football.