Stade Rennais vs AC Milan Preview, Team News, Tickets & Prediction

AC Milan travel to Brittany to take on Rennes for the decisive leg of their UEFA Europa League playoff tie. Here is a preview.

Stade Rennais completed their Europa League playoff against AC Milan in front of their fans as they battled for a place in Round 16. After finishing fourth in the league last season, Rennes competed admirably in this season’s Europa League, where they finished second to Villarreal in Group F.

Les Rouge et Noirs thrashed newly-promoted Metz 5-1 in their opening Ligue 1 match of 2023-24, and although they went unbeaten in the next five league games, they finally won again at home to Breton rivals Nantes.

Elsewhere, there was a 3-0 win to kickstart the Europa League campaign against Maccabi Haifa. Still, Matchday 2 brought a slim defeat to Villarreal as they went on a three-game winless run which ended when they defeated Panathinaikos.

Rennes were victorious in the next two Europa League matches despite a five-match winless run that saw Bruno Genesio sacked and replaced by his predecessor, Julien Stéphan. Yet, their runner-up place in Group F was confirmed with a 3-2 defeat to Villarreal on Matchday 6 that saw them finish a single point behind the Spaniards.

Since the end of their group stage campaign, Rennes have gone unbeaten, and they must continue that good form while they seek to improve their 10th position in the league.

Milan are visiting as the most heralded of both clubs, but the Britons must make sure they give a good account of themselves in the home leg.

The Italians will focus on a deep run into the second-tier tournament after reaching the semi-final of last season’s UEFA Champions League. They sit nine points behind runaway Serie A leaders Inter Milan, so a continental triumph is needed to make something out of an eventful campaign.

Stefano Pioli’s side started their domestic season with three wins on the bounce, but a 5-1 thrashing against their city rivals sent shockwaves across the Rossoneri faithful. They won the next four matches in Serie A until a 1-0 loss to Juventus at home.

Meanwhile, the European campaign had begun with goalless draws against Newcastle and Borussia Dortmund and a 3-0 defeat at PSG. Milan went winless in the next two league matches but secured their first victory on the continent at home to the Parisians.

A defeat against Dortmund in the penultimate group match took a top-two spot out of their hands, but they still had a chance to enter the Europa League playoff round.

This set up a Matchday 6 showdown against Newcastle, which lived up to its billing as Joelinton’s first-half goal was turned around by Christian Pulisic and Samuel Chukwueze to spark incredible scenes at St. James’ Park.

The Rossoneri have all to play for in this competition and they are already one of the favourites to win it, thus, they must get past Rennes in this round.

Pioli’s men would be hoping to have secured a first-leg advantage but must still approach the away game with caution and focus on completing the job.

Match Tickets

This match takes place on Thursday, February 22, 2024, with kick-off set for 5:45 PM UK time. Match tickets are available for sale on each club’s website. Still, Renne’s subscribers have priority purchasing while their box office will be open to the general public on Wednesday, January 24, at 2:00 PM, subject to availability.

The Roazhon Park is the scene for this epic fixture, and more than 29,000 fans should be making their way into the stadium for this game, which means it will be sold out. Those attending would make it a beautiful atmosphere for their team, but getting tickets could prove extremely difficult.

Hence, traveling supporters keen to enter the stadium can purchase their Rennais vs AC Milan tickets on a ticket resale site.

Team News

Amine Gouiri should have recovered in time for Stade Rennais, while Christopher Wooh is with the Cameroon squad but should be available for this Europa League match.

AC Milan is dealing with a considerable absentee list that includes the likes of Pierre Kalulu, Fikayo Tomori, Malick Thiaw, Tommaso Pobega, Mattia Caldara, and Alessandro Florenzi and they will hope to have any of them back for this second-leg game.

Meanwhile, Samuel Chukwueze and Ismael Bennacer are away on international duty, but they will also look to be featured in this tie.

Line-ups

Julien Stéphan has a massive task on his hands to galvanize his team to a result against Milan, and he would do well to get a tune out of his unfancied team against the Italian giants.

Rennes have a lot of improvement to do before the tie begins, so expect to see their very best legs take to the Roazhon pitch against Milan.

Milan is sweating on the fitness of several key players, especially in defense, and it remains to be seen if they would be fit enough to feature against Rennes. Simon Kjaer and Matteo Gabbia could continue their partnership at centreback, nevertheless.

Elsewhere, Christian Pulisic has been a bright spot in a frustrating season for the Rossoneri. His dynamism, alongside Olivier Giroud’s goalscoring prowess, would be key to Milan’s hopes of reaching the Round of 16.

Prediction

Milan is the favorite, and it would be considered a crisis should they crash out of the Europa League against Rennes.

It is pertinent that they take control of both games and show that they deserve to go through by taking the chances that come their way.

On the other hand, Rennes have scored eight times in three home games in Europe this season, and they would be keen to show that attacking side when roared on by their supporters. Milan’s lack of personnel in defense could also make for an open game if qualification is still on the line.