Preview: Le Havre, Rennes Look to Snap Winless Streak

Le Havre (16th place, six points) will travel to Roazhon Park for a Friday night clash against Stade Rennais (13th place, eight points) with both sides looking for a victory to distance themselves from the relegation zone.

The home side have two wins in its first eight league matches, with Julien Stéphan and his team last winning on September 15th in a 3-0 victory over Montpellier. Since that result, Rennes have had two draws and two losses, so they're only two points above the relegation playoff spot.

Ahead of the match against Le Havre, Rennes goalkeeper Steve Mandanda spoke to the media and noted what aspects of their game need improving if they want to shed this four-match winless streak.

"What I'm seeing is that we're not conceding too many chances but we're getting a goal every time. That's the most frustrating thing for me, especially as a goalkeeper. We need to be more accurate and more focused on every single ball."

"But it's true that, with this system, we still manage to be more solid. Now, we also saw at the end of the match that we were effective in another system. In any case, we try to give our all to everything the coach suggests."

If Rennes feel a sense of urgency to win, so does Le Havre. Their last victory came on September 1st which was a 3-1 victory over AJ Auxerre. Since that result, Didier Digard and his team have lost five matches in a row, but Stéphan believes the away side will be looking for a bounce-back performance after their loss to Olympique Lyonnais last weekend.

"They're a team that fell badly at home. They're bound to want to make up for that and bounce back. It will also depend on the momentum we bring to this match. We're going to concentrate on ourselves, on what we have to produce. That's the most important thing."

Le Havre have struggled on the defensive side this season, conceding 19 goals so far and if they want to come away with all three points, Le Club Doyen will have to tighten up that aspect of their game. Both teams need the points, so this matchup should be thrilling to start the latest Ligue 1 matchday.

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