Lepaul hat trick powers Rennes past Strasbourg
Stade Rennais will have eased much of the pressure on under-fire manager Habib Beye, as they kicked off Sunday in Ligue 1 McDonald's with a ruthless 4-1 win over RC Strasbourg. Catch up on all the action from Roazhon Park with our match report.
short-handed racing put under pressure
Ahead of an away European match and coming off the back of a midweek match in Ligue 1 as well, this was never going to be an easy trip for Liam Rosenior's young Strasbourg, but it was made doubly difficult through the team's absences. Emanuel Emegha remains a long-term miss, while Ismaël Doukouré (suspension) and Mamadou Sarr (knock). were also both absent. Despite his side having good depth, this would serve as a stern test and so it proved.
After some fine play in the early going, including Samuel Amo-Ameyaw (himself only just returned from injury) putting a shot just wide on seven minutes, it soon became one way traffic for the hosts, who turned in a clinical display. Two minutes later, Mahdi Camara played the ball wide for Musa Al-Taamari, who crossed for Esteban Lepaul to open the scoring (9'). From there, the match settled somewhat but youngster Kader Meïté would double the lead ten minutes before the break, as Racing struggled to clear a corner.
HATTRICK FOR LEPAUL! 🤯 pic.twitter.com/Pg61aKxGop
— Ligue 1 English (@Ligue1_ENG) November 2, 2025
Lepaul saves the best for last
Brimming with confidence and with the lead in hand, into the second half, Rennes wasted no time in adding to it, with Lepaul again finding the net (48'), with Meïté this time playing provider to set up his teammate at close range. Sebastian Nanasi, who was just into the match off the bench, had a fine combination play with Abdoul Ouattara just before the hour, but the Swedish international came up short. Despite the deficit, Racing continued to push, with Valentín Barco and Julio Enciso both testing Rennes 'keeper Brice Samba (57', 58').
It was then the turn of Lepaul to strike again, as he slotted home an inch-perfect finish on the counter (60'). Nanasi would pull one back (76') with a neat finish across the face of goal, but the outcome was never in doubt as Rennes won for just the third time this season, denying Racing the chance to leapfrog Monaco into third.
