OPPOSITION VIEW: STADE RENNAIS

Sunderland's pre-season preparations conclude with a home game against French side Stade Rennais. We spoke to French journalist François Rauzy to discuss what we can expect, how last season went and how their fans reacted to Eliezer Mayenda's signing...

Rennes finished 6th in Ligue 1 last season, thoughts on how that season went?

It was a strange season, with a first 7 months with Habib Beye as the manager, he had not so bad results. But the style of play was unconsistent and his choice to play with 3 (or 5) at the back and to build a squad with no winger at the summer has been frustrating for many fans. He struggled in his management of the experienced players such as Brice Samba, Seko Fofana or Ludovic Blas that didn’t like him and after a poor game at Marseille in the French Cup we learnt that he was trying to leave to get the Marseille job. He still left the team at the 6th place despite a big gap between Rennes and the Top 5 at that time in the start of February. After his departure and before the appointment of Franck Haise, Rennes had to play PSG at Roazhon Park, the coach of the B team took charge for that game and then, the miracle : the team was on a 4 losses strike and managed to beat PSG 3-1, playing with a 4-3-3 that the players and the fans were asking for for weeks. Franck Haise, that started his carrer as a youth coach in Rennes, and who was linked to the job for years is finally appointed. He kept the 4-3-3 and got Rennes in position to finish in the Top 3, but the two last away games at Lyon and Marseille were too bad and the team finished 6th with a comeback in Europa League after two seasons without Europe (six consecutives European campaigns between 2018/2019 and 2023/2024). It was a relief to come back to Europe but also a disappointment to miss the podium and the Champions League.

What do the fans think of manager Franck Haise?

Franck Haise is highly regarded—partly because he began his coaching career at Stade Rennais' renowned youth academy, but also because he successfully implemented a system and style of play that appealed to fans right from the start. His personality is also universally appreciated; he is personable yet demanding, humble, and authentic in his communication. Haise and Régis Le Bris know each other very well, since your coach also began his career at the Stade Rennais youth academy. Both Haise and Le Bris left Rennes in 2012 and later found themselves at Lorient.

Rennes recently signed Eliezer Mayenda, what was the fan reaction to that signing?

I think most supporters hadn't heard of Mayenda before he signed. The transfer fee and his profile as a young prospect have created certain expectations among the Rennes fanbase. There are questions regarding his role, as he was initially presented as a signing to play on the right wing, yet Franck Haise recently spoke of him as a central player who would compete with Estéban Lepaul - Rennes' starting center-forward and last season's Ligue 1 top scorer. He is a week behind in his pre-season preparation compared to the Rennes squad, who resumed training earlier than Sunderland, and we haven't seen him start a match for the first team yet. I hope the fans will be patient enough to let him settle into the team.

Obviously it is a friendly on Saturday, do you think Rennes will play their first-teamers?

Yes Rennes will definitely play their first-teamers on saturday as this game is their last friendly before the start of the Ligue 1 season. And Rennes will begin with PSG away so there is no time to lose. I wonder if there is a second game scheduled for the "B teams" of Rennes and Sunderland on Sunday morning too.

Who are their best players?

Rennes best players are : Estéban Lepaul, Ligue 1 top scorer last year, the captain Valentin Rongier, the new signing from Lens Adrien Thomasson who finished Ligue 1 top assist provider last season, and Brice Samba, who was France’s 2nd goalkeeper at the World Cup but he came back from holidays yesterday so I don’t know if he’s able to start yet.

Other than Mayenda, have they signed any notable players or made any big sales?

The biggest signing is Adrien Thomasson who signed for free at the beginning of July since his contract with Lens had came to an end. The club also signed the English center back Charlie Cresswell for +20M€ last week, and there are lot of expectations around him. The last big sale was Jeremy Jacquet to Liverpool for 60M€ in january but the player joined the Reds only this July.

Where do you think they'll finish in Ligue 1 this season?

Tough question! Hard to answer now, but Rennes has an advantage compared to other French clubs: due to the massive drop in broadcasting revenues, all clubs are forced to sell players before they can launch their transfer activity. However, thanks to their shareholder - billionaire François Pinault - and the sale of Jacquet finalized this summer, Rennes has already assembled the bulk of its squad. Given this situation, I believe the club should be aiming for a top-four finish in Ligue 1.