In the fifth round of the French championship, Lyon will host Rennes. Both teams started the season quite well. The Lyonnais occupy fifth place, trailing the Bretons by only two points. Rennes sits on the edge of the top three, level with Lille and three points behind Monaco, which has already played its match in this round. So this is a contest between contenders for leading positions. In such a confrontation it's hard to predict the winner.

Rennes has impressed almost more than any other Ligue 1 club so far. He started with a bright draw against PSG (2:2), then fought back to beat Le Mans (3:2), defeated Angers (2:1) and Marseille (1:0). And during the week they drew 0-0 with Sturm in the Europa League. Thus Rennes demonstrates tactical flexibility and a variety of results and approaches. They can play against defensive teams as well as against attacking ones. Their attacking play is more effective, because Rennes has a very interesting squad of players. They strive to act actively, relying on the attack.

Lyon is trying to build a more balanced game. They were knocked out by Fenerbahce in the Champions League qualifiers, but in Ligue 1 so far they have not lost. The Lyonnais drew with Le Havre (1-1), beat Auxerre (3-1), shared points with PSG (0-0), and midweek away beat Anderlecht (2-1) in the Europa League. This win will give Lyon a boost, which will still undergo substantial rotation. But Rennes may lack this experience. But in terms of game intensity Rennes looks preferable.