A hard-won victory in Rennes [0-1]

The Girondins wasted no time in getting down to business at Rennes' Roazhon Park - both sides were on the attack in the opening minutes. In the very first minute, Rennes' Flavien Tait combined with Serhou Guirassy to fire in a shot from the left flank, but Costil had it covered. Barely a minute later, Hatem Ben Arfa fturned on the flair to cut through the hosts' defence. He laid off the ball for Toma Basic, who found Enock Kwateng on the right. The winger floated in a cross for Ben Arfa, but it was just out of his reach. After this intense opening, both teams settled down a little and chances were few and far between. Bordeaux dominated possession and concentrated their efforts down the flanks. So far, Rennes looked solid in midfield and at the back. Getting the ball as far as the strikers was complicated to say the least.

The turning point which would ultimately settle the game came in the 36th minute, courtesy of new Bordeaux No. 8 Hatem Ben Arfa. Connecting with a good delivery from Samuel Kalu, Ben Arfa threw off the defence with a rapid change of direction, ducking left before weaving right and firing off a superbly-placed shot which left the Rennes keeper rooted to the spot. The Girondins saw their dominance rewarded, and Hatem Ben Arfa chalked up his first goal for Bordeaux. Hopefully the first of many! Rennes almost snatched one back in the 42nd minute, when Del Castillo cut inside and hammered his shot onto the crossbar.  The referee blew up for half-time, with the Girondins flying high after a thoroughly dominant first-half performance.

Bordeaux returned from the break raring to go, winning a corner from their very first movement. In the 46th minute, Samuel Kalu picked up a booking for a foul on Camavinga. Jean-Louis Gasset's men were certainly not shrinking from their tackles, pressing hard whenever the hosts got the ball. Gasset made a triple substitution in the 58th minute, with Samuel Kalu, Josh Maja and Mehdi Zerkane making way for Rémi Oudin, Jimmy Briand and Yacine Adli.  As time wore on Rennes finally began to see more of the ball, but found their attacking intentions thwarted by a focused and well-drilled Bordeaux defence. Enock Kwateng also saw yellow in the 65th minute, as the Girondins continued to defend robustly. The hosts finally created a massive chance on goal a few minutes later, when a cross from Guirassy found Hunou directly in front of the Bordeaux goal. Somehow, he contrived to smash his shot over the bar. As it turned out, he was offside anyway. Rennes had another chance a few minutes later, when Doku capped off an impressive attacking movement with a shot from a tight angle. Fortunately for us, it rattled off the post. In the final minutes of the game, Bordeaux held on tight as Rennes monopolised possession and pushed for a late equaliser. Jean-Louis Gasset's side remained concentrated and solid in the face of this late onslaught, and soon enough the whistle came: game over, 1-0 to Bordeaux. A well-deserved win for the Girondins, who were rewarded for their hard work, solidarity and spirit.