Clermont are set to face Rennes at the Gabriel Montepeid on matchday 18 in Ligue 1 in 2022/23. Clermont are currently in 9th position in Ligue 1 2022/23, with 22 points from 17 matches played. They have won six matches, drawn four, and lost seven. They were winless in their last six league encounters, and Pascal Gastien’s men failed to score in a domestic fixture since defeating Auxerre 2-1 in early October. Clermont returned to winning ways recently, defeating Lyon 1-0. Despite their struggles, they have put themselves in a decent position to remain in the top flight for another campaign, currently nine points above the relegation line. The Lancers will try to avoid dropping points in this fixture by going all out.
Rennes finished last season in fourth position in Ligue 1 with a total of 66 points, winning 20, losing 12, and drawing six. This season in Ligue 1, Rennes’s form has been very good overall, with ten wins, four draws, and three losses. Rennes is currently fourth out of 20 teams in the Ligue 1 table, having won 59% of their matches. Their away form is decent, with two wins, four draws, and two losses. Additionally, Rennes have scored a total of 34 goals this season in Ligue 1.
Below are some of the stats for both teams from the current season.
Overall performance in Ligue 1 this season
The above viz shows the percentile rank of the team in attacking, defensive, and possession stats compared to other teams in Ligue 1. One of the major highlights is that Clermont is among the top 95.3 percentile for PPDA (pass per defensive action). They have a PPDA of 5.8, which indicates their intent to win the ball back as soon as possible after losing possession. They rank poorly in all other departments and are facing some tough times in terms of xG and shots per 90 minutes.
The above viz shows the percentile rank of Rennes compared to other teams in Ligue 1. They are ranked in the top 85.7 percentile for high press and the top 90.4 percentile for goals per 90. This is an indicator of their aggressive intent and willingness to strike this season. They deploy high-intensity pressing and are therefore ranked in the top 81 percentile for passes per defensive action. They are ranked in the top 90 percentile for goals per 90 minutes and score an average of 2.0 goals per game.
Clermont in attack
The above viz shows the shot map of the team in the current season. It can be observed that the Lancers have scored most of their goals from just around the 6-yard box. They have the lowest xG per 90 in Ligue 1, which is below one. The team averages 9.29 shots per 90 minutes with 36.7% shot accuracy. Clermont have an xG per shot of 1.22 in the league, compared to 1.84 for their opponents.
Rennes in attack
The French side has scored 34 goals with an average of just over two goals per match. The above viz shows the shot map of the team in the current season. It can be observed that Rennes have scored most of their goals from just around the 6-yard box. Rennes averages 14 shots per match with 50% accuracy. They have an xG of 32.15, owing to the fact that the majority of their shots have come from dangerous areas inside the penalty box. Additionally, Rennes have an xG per shot of 0.14 in the league. They have an xG per 90 of 1.98 for the current season.
Attacking efficiency
Clermont are at a poor rank when it comes to their efficiency in attack and the above benchmarking shows where they stand currently in Ligue 1 as compared to other teams. Clermont are currently at 9% counterattacking efficiency, making 1.53 counterattacks per 90, with 26.8% of them ending in shots. They perform 24.35 positional attacks per 90, with 21.7% ending in shots.
Rennes, on the other hand, creates 28.94 positional attacks per 90, with 24.6% ending in shots. Rennes are currently at 18% counterattacking efficiency, making 2.29 counterattacks per 90, with 33.2% of them ending in shots. Rennes are on top of the league in terms of efficiency in positional attacks, and it will take some smart defending from Clermont to top Rennes’ attacking prowess.
Winning defensive duels
Clermont have surprised many with the displays they are giving on the pitch. Their defence has been solid and has conceded 25 goals, which is the 10th fewest goals conceded in the league. Clermont gives up 10.59 fouls per match and makes 43.88 interceptions on average. Defensively, they take part in 68.47 duels with a 63% success rate.
Rennes are ranked lower in Ligue 1 for defensive duels win rate for defensive duels per 90 winning only 59.7% of them. The team commits 12.88 fouls on average and takes part in 63.82 defensive duels per 90, for a success rate of 59.6%. The team makes 42.76 interceptions on average. Clermont have the right mindset in defence and does look fit to stop a threatening Rennes attack.
Man to watch out for
Amine Gouiri is a striker for French Ligue 1 club Rennes. In the 2022–23 French Ligue 1, Amine Gouiri played 15 matches. They have 15 shots on target from a total of 30 and have scored six goals (6.17 xG). Amine Gouiri averages 22 passes per match with a pass completion rate of 81% and has one assist. He has an overall xG of 0.21 per shot, and it can be seen that he has scored most of his goals from inside the six-yard box. He has managed to score one goal from just near the edge of the box. Rennes will definitely depend heavily on Gouiri in their clash against Clermont.
Team news
With no Clermont players currently in the top 20 of the leading goalscorers in Ligue 1, manager Pascal Gastien will hope that Serbian striker Komnen Andric can build on his impressive first start of the current league campaign on New Year’s Day. After coming off the substitutes’ bench to score the late winner against Lyon, Muhammed Cham could replace Elbasan Rashani in the Lancers’ starting 11.
Rennes suffered a significant blow in their victory against Nice, with talismanic striker Martin Terrier now ruled out for the rest of the campaign after sustaining a cruciate ligament rupture to his right patella after 36 minutes. With The Red and Blacks now without their top scorer for the foreseeable future, manager Bruno Genesio will rely on Arnaud Kalimuendo and Amine Gouiri to fire the visitors to victory in the final third whilst a potential replacement is found in this month’s transfer window.
Finally, in the wake of suffering more defeats than victories at the Gabriel Montpied Stadium in Ligue 1 this season, Rennes are most likely to condemn Clermont Foot to another loss in front of their supporters on matchday 18. Both teams will be eager to bag all three points, with Clermont being much more desperate than the other due to the fact that they are playing in front of their own supporters.
Visuals via TFA data viz engine
