Chelsea V Rennes – Hosts favorites to take three easy points

2020-21 UEFA Champions' League Group E preview: Chelsea V Rennes – Stamford Bridge – Wednesday, 4th November 2020 – 20:00 hrs BST

Chelsea V Rennes Preview

Chelsea host French club Stade Rennais aka Rennes at Stamford Bridge in a Group E clash of the UEFA Champions' League on Wednesday night.

Julien Stephan's Rennes are still looking for their first win in Group stages, having lost their opener to Sevilla away in Spain 0-1 last week and drawn 1-1 to Krasnodar at home before that.

Chelsea managed to hold Europa League champions Sevilla to a goalless draw at Stamford Bridge and followed it up with an emphatic 0-4 away win over Krasnodar in Russia a week ago that put them at the top of the table with Sevilla on 4 points.

As far as forms on the domestic front goe, Rennes continued where they left off last season, maintaining their 3rd spot on the Ligue 1 table with 18 points from their 9 outings.

Their most recent win was over Brest on Saturday and had they not suffered the only loss of the season to bottom-half side Angers, the Eastern France club would have been sharing points at the top of the table with perennial League leaders PSG.

Frank Lampard's Blues on the other hand have managed to squirm into the Top 4 after an unsatisfactory start to the season, beating Burnley 0-3 in an away game last Saturday.

Chelsea Champions League form:

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Chelsea form (all competitions):

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Rennes Champions League form:

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Rennes form (all competitions):

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Chelsea V Rennes Player Form

Chelsea will be without the services of American international forward Christian Pulisic and midfielder Billy Gilmour, both of whom are injured.

Hakim Zitech and Timo Werner, two of the scorers in the Burnley win along with compatriot Kai Havertz, may be given a rest for Wednesday night's Stamford Bridge game.

Ben Chilwell and Thiago Silva could also be handed a rest, giving opportunities to the likes of Emerson Palmieri, Antonio Rudiger and Callum Hudson-Odoi.

Rennes will be handicapped by the absence of injured players, center-back Daniele Rugani and midfielder Eduardo Camavinga. However, defensive midfielder Steven Nzonzi is expected to start having served his suspension.

Chelsea probable XI in a 4-3-3 formation:

Edouard Mendy (goal), Cesar Azpilicueta, Kurt Zouma, Antonio Rudiger, Emerson Palmieri, Mateo Kovacic, Jorginho, Kai Havertz, Mason Mount, Tammy Abraham, Callum Hudson-Odoi

Rennes Predicted XI in a 4-3-3 formation:

Alfred Gomis (goal), Hamari Traore, Damien Da Silva, Nayef Aguerd, Dalbert, Steven Nzonzi, James Lea Siliki, Martin Terrier, Romain Del Castillo, Serhou Guirassy, Jeremy Doku

If Lampard goes ahead with resting so many of his key players, the game could have a competitive edge to it. But Chelsea still remain the UK bookmakers‘ favorites.

Chelsea V Rennes Bookmaker Odds & Predictions

All the Bet365 odds quoted are subject to change and were correct as of 03/11/2020.

• Chelsea to win: 4/11
• Draw: 4/1
• Rennes to win: 15/2

Both teams to score

Correct score

• Chelsea 2-0: 6/1
• Chelsea 1-0: 12/1
• Chelsea 2-1: 15/2
• Chelsea 3-0: 8/1
• Draw 1-1: 17/2
• Chelsea 3-1: 10/1 at Bet365 (predicted scoreline)
• Rennes 1-0: 20/1
• Rennes 2-1: 22/1

Anytime scorer

• Callum Hudson-Odoi: 6/4
• Kai Havertz: 6/4
• Jorginho: 5/2
• Mason Mount: 7/4

This article was first posted here