Good evening and thank you for joining us for this evening’s coverage of Chelsea’s Champions League tie with Rennes of France’s Ligue 1.
Have a read of George Overhill’s preview for this encounter to get up to speed with the pre-game events: https://www.overtimeonline.co.uk/rennes-vs-chelsea-champions-league-preview/
Chelsea and Sevilla sit on seven points and wins tonight for both of them would secure progression to the knockout stages with both Krasnodar and Rennes currently on one point apiece.
Four changes to the Rennes side that lost 3-0 at Stamford Bridge three weeks ago. The suspended Dalbert is ineligible because of his two yellow cards in that game. Nayef Aguerd and Martin Terrier who also started in that game will not make an appearance either.
The fourth change is Yann Gboho who makes the bench. Gerzino Nyamsi, Adrien Truffert, Eduardo Camavinga and Jéremy Doku come into the starting XI.
Four changes from Chelsea’s 2-0 win over Newcastle United on Saturday. César Azpilicueta comes in for Reece James, Thiago Silva replaces Antonio Rüdiger. Jorginho starts in the place of N’Golo Kanté and Callum Hudson-Odoi plays preferred to Hakim Ziyech, all of whom are on the bench tonight.
A big night for Edouard Mendy, back to his previous home without the hero’s welcome due to the lack of crowd. Can he keep another clean sheet and keep Chelsea’s goals against tally in Group E at 0?
Kick off here at Roazhon Park.
4′: Timo Werner has a big chance to give Chelsea an early lead in France. Played in by Hudson-Odoi, the German skies his effort.
7′: First corner for Chelsea but headed away by the home side, yet to really venture outside their own half.
9′: Mateo Kovacic with a late challenge on James Lea Siliki. Early enough on in the game to not warrant a yellow.
12′: Sevilla take the lead against Krasnodar. If the Blues can take the lead here and both sides can hold on, qualification for the knockout stages would be secured.
15′: Half chance for Rennes dealt with by Mendy as Lea Siliki unable to get a decent effort away at goal.
21′: Goal for Chelsea: Mason Mount dispossesses Doku before playing a brilliantly weighted diagonal ball to Hudson-Odoi who finishes with aplomb. 0-1.
25′: Rennes started in a 4-3-3 and now have seemed to drop off into 4-5-1 defensively, a show of how easily Chelsea have worked through them in the opening 25 minutes.
28′: Best play of the game for Rennes, keeping the ball and moving it around nicely. Hudson-Odoi tracks his runner and prevents the cross coming in. Corner for Rennes is cleared by Tammy Abraham.
29′: Double chance for Chelsea. Azpilcueta’s cross field ball finds Werner who plays in Ben Chilwell. His initial cross is blocked but his pullback to Mount is saved by the Rennes keeper.
31′: Credit to the home side, they are not just looking to sit back, they are getting bodies forward in attack. A cross from the right is blocked by Kurt Zouma and the follow-up by Lea-Siliki is blasted over the top.
34′: The home side have had the better of the ball in the last five minutes, Chelsea unable to get a foot on it. They are just missing the end product as Camavinga fires another shot wide from distance.
37′: The Blues are struggling to get out of their own half as Rennes press high. Frank Lampard’s side need to see this lead through to half-time. A first shot on target from Sehrou Guirassy, straight down the centre of the goal though, Mendy gathers with relative ease.
39′: Chilwell with a loose pass looking for Silva, the Brazilian manages to track back and intercept the Rennes pass into the Chelsea box.
41′: Another chance for Rennes as Mendy pushes away Damien Da Silva’s header from Benjamin Bourigeaud’s corner. The Chelsea stopper is called into action again from another corner and tips it away, the ball back in goes out for a goal kick.
44′: Chelsea are camped in here, this has been a slow couple of minutes and it’s about to get slower. Silva trips Guirassy as the striker tries to turn him on the edge of the box. Free kick in a dangerous area for Rennes.
45′: Azpilicueta in the wall heads the free kick away and Chelsea make it to half-time with a slender lead. Rennes will feel aggrieved that they haven’t been able to get a goal for their efforts in the last 20 minutes of that half.
Not much to choose between the sides at half time. Both have had six shots and two on target but Chelsea’s goal is the difference after 45 minutes.
Kick-off for the second half here in France.
47′: Early chance for Chelsea as Werner heads the ball into the Rennes goal only for the flag to go up for offside.
53′: Rennes carry on where they left off as Hamari Traore’s shot is deflected for a corner.
55′: A flurry of corners comes to nothing as Abraham blocks the incoming corner. Chelsea get a goal kick but the home side win the ball back and continue their early dominance of the ball in this half.
58′: Rennes move the ball nicely from left to right and Chilwell manages to prevent Doku from getting in behind him.
59′: Krasnodar level in Spain. As things stand Chelsea would have to wait until their game with the Russian side to confirm their place in the knockout phase.
62′: Chelsea have needed Silva to be excellent too. It’s an opponent he’s no stranger to and Chelsea have needed to call on his experience once or twice already.
63′: A penalty shout for Chelsea as Abraham is being held but the referee gives a free kick the other way.
63′: First substitution for Rennes as Lea Siliki makes way for Romain Del Castillo.
65′: Traore is causing problems down the right from full back as the ball makes its’ way to the left. Nothing comes of it but more purposeful from the French side.
67′: Mount and Abraham make way for Olivier Giroud and Kante. No fourth goal in four appearances for the Chelsea striker but his defensive work will have pleased Lampard, as will Mount’s assist.
70′: A slightly defensive change in bringing Kante on for Mount but that’s an indicator of Rennes’ pressure. Chelsea will hope Giroud can hold up the ball more and bring others into play where Abraham struggled.
72′: Mendy called into action again as Guirassy skips past the Chelsea defence but the angle favoured the Senegal keeper. The corner causes trouble but Mendy recovers and grabs the ball before the Rennes players try to bundle the ball over the line.
74′: Two more substitutes for Chelsea, Kovacic and Hudson-Odoi make way for Kai Havertz and Ziyech.
78′: Camavinga comes off for Rennes and is replaced by Clement Grenier. A good performance by the young French international, a bright spark in this young side.
81′: This has been a much tighter affair than the previous game at Stamford Bridge. The substitutes Lampard has made suggest a manager who wants to try and finish the game. Could have used the game to give minutes to Fikayo Tomori or Marcos Alonso but not the case at 1-0.
84′: Silva again stops the danger and gives the home side a corner as the ball is played behind Chilwell.
84′: Goal for Rennes as Guirassy heads in with four Chelsea players around him. Well deserved. It has taken four games for Chelsea’s net to be broken. 1-1.
86′: Double substitute for Rennes as Guirassy, Truffert and Doku make way for Gboho, Faitout Maouassa and former AC Milan and Watford player M’Baye Niang.
87′: Yellow card for Grenier as Kante wriggles clear. Ziyech’s free kick finds Chilwell whose header into the ground is patted up in the air and easily collected by Alfred Gomis in the Rennes goal.
90′: Goal for Chelsea as Giroud leaps highest to head home after Gomis saves Werner’s effort. Just what he was brought on to do. 1-2.
90′: Werner is replaced by James who comes on for the final three minutes.
Full-time. Three points for Chelsea and they are through to the knockout stages. You can’t say they deserved it on the balance of it but Lampard will take it and it will come as a relief.
Likely to see squad rotation for the visit of Krasnodar on 8th December as both Chelsea and Sevilla are through to the knockout phase. Sevilla also get a late goal to win. Munir El Haddadi with the winner in Russia.
Attention turns to the league leaders and former Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho on Sunday. Thank you for following this coverage and we hope to see you again for that encounter at Stamford Bridge in five days.
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