Rennes vs Arsenal Betting Pick | Europa League

Europa League

2019-03-07 - Rennes vs Arsenal

A Sports Betting Pick by Auls

Rennes v Arsenal
Football: European Europa League Last 16 First Leg
Thursday 7th March 2019 - Kick Off 5:55pm
This game is live on TV

Rennes

A memorable season saw Rennes finish 5th in the French top flight and earned them a spot in the Europa League this season. Juggling domestic and European commitments can be a real challenge for clubs who are simply not used to those extra fixtures and that has looked to be the case for Rennes who are in mid-table in their domestic League although with two paths back into European competition still available for them for the next campaign.

One of those is through the French Cup, although a Semi Final with Lyon and potential Final against Paris Saint-Germain looks a big ask, while the other would be winning the Europa League and entering the Champions League. The upset of Real Betis in the Last 32 will give Rennes some real belief, but they are considered a significant underdog in the Last 16 too. The First Leg at home could be all important for Rennes who have lost 1 of their 4 Europa League games here and won 2 of those.

Rennes have lost 1 of their last 8 games in all competitions since a 4-1 defeat to Paris Saint-Germain and they have won 5 of those games to put some momentum behind them. They are unbeaten in 12 at home in all competitions and have won 8 of those games. Rennes have scored two or more goals in 5 straight games at Roazhon Park.

Hamari Traore and M'Baye Niang are both suspended for the First Leg.

Arsenal

Unai Emery is once again getting his tactics right for Arsenal and that has seen them climb into a position to finish in the top four places in the Premier League and earn a spot back in the Champions League. Only a late penalty miss by Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang prevented Arsenal from completing the League double over North London rivals Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday, but the focus shifts back to the Europa League this week.

At the start of the season Emery did say that he would prefer to win the Europa League than finish in the top four of the Premier League as the best way to return to the Champions League. Right now both avenues remain open to Arsenal which means there are a big couple of months ahead as we turn into the final corner in the 2018/19 season. The Gunners beat BATE Borisov in the Europa League Last 32, but they were beaten in Belarus and that ended their winning run at 3 games away from home in the Europa League.

Arsenal are unbeaten in 4 games in all competitions and they had won 3 in a row before the 1-1 draw at Tottenham Hotspur which has to be seen as a positive result. However it is yet another away game in which Arsenal have failed to win and they now have 2 wins from their last 10 games on their travels.

On Sunday Arsenal have a pivotal top four game against Manchester United so there could be some changes made to the starting eleven to keep things fresh for that game. Alexandre Lacazette won't be involved as he is suspended.

Head to Head

This is the first time Rennes and Arsenal meet in a competitive fixture.

Prediction

The draw for the Europa League gave both London based clubs a First Leg at home and the decision was made by UEFA that they had to switch one of the ties around.

That tie was the one between Rennes and Arsenal who will now meet in the First Leg in France rather than in North London.

It might be ideal for Rennes who have been given a weekend off by the French FA to prepare for this fixture. They will know the Home Leg is very important to give them a chance to progress to the Quarter Final despite beating Real Betis 1-3 in Spain in the last Round, and they could be facing Arsenal at a very good time.

The Gunners are in decent form, but this game is the meat in a Tottenham Hotspur-Manchester United sandwich for them and Arsenal are firmly in the top four race to believe those fixtures are very important to them. With a Home Leg to come next week, Arsenal might have a much changed team starting this fixture for them and it could give Rennes an opportunity for a surprise result.

It certainly makes Arsenal feel a short price at close to odds on to win here with that Manchester United game likely to in their minds. Rennes have been good at home this season too and they score enough goals to make me believe a vulnerable Arsenal backline is going to be tested here.

Arsenal have good attacking players though and Rennes have conceded in 3 of their 4 home games in the Europa League. It should mean the visitors have their chances here too and I think the best play may be backing at least three goals to be shared out.

Rennes have scored two or more goals in 5 straight at home in all competitions, but have only kept a couple of clean sheets in that time. With their best chances of earning a place coming from having a First Leg lead I expect Rennes to take some risks and I feel the game could come together to be one of the entertaining ones from the First Legs taking place.