“Tonight, we played half a match.” Frรฉdรฉric Antonetti found his team way too timid to trouble the Rennes side, who repeatedly went back to the task until they succeeded in finding the breakthrough at the beginning of the second half. Thomert and Briand opened the hostilities right from the start of the match, but Letizi was vigilant, perfectly playing his role as the last barrier. On the other side, Douchez, the Rennes guardian angel, wasn’t as active, and only Mouloungui and Remy managed to approach the Breton goals, but without any success. In the final minutes, the locals pushed to make the difference, but neither Thomert, Pagis, nor Mangane could make the Nice net shake. M. Duhamel could then send both teams back to the locker rooms with a scoreless draw, a quite flattering outcome for the reds and blacks.
Following Guy Lacombe’s instructions, the Rennes team resumed their assault on the Nice penalty area right from the start of the second half, and it only took five minutes for Jimmy Briand to deceive Lionel Letizi following a perfectly placed cross by Jรฉrรดme Leroy. The Rennes team had accomplished the hardest part by scoring first, and the Nice team seemed unable to overturn the situation despite a beautiful attempt by Loรฏc Remy, who placed a fine header, unfortunately saved on the line by Thomert, as effective in attack as in defense.
Frรฉdรฉric Antonetti then attempted a coaching operation by replacing Mouloungui, Jeunechamp, and Bamogo with Modeste, Echouafni, and Ben Saada, but nothing worked, and the aiglons suffered their third defeat, by far the most logical of the season.
Now remains to prepare for the rest of the season with the reception of the bottom-placed Sochaux next Saturday, before making a short trip the following Saturday to the nearby Monaco, and then hosting the Girondins de Bordeaux at the Ray. Three matches within reach of the aiglons, who must dare a little more to regain the offensive effectiveness they had become accustomed to since the start of the season.
