Stade Rennais must not have impressed Jorge Sampaoli, present in the stands of Roazhon Park this Sunday. While he must be made official at the head of the team this Monday after the departure of Julien Stéphan this week, the Argentinian witnessed the second consecutive defeat of the Bretons.
A defeat without scoring a single goal for the second time in a row which leaves Rennes in a sad 13th placeth place in Ligue 1 before the international break. Worse than that, Rennes is only one point away from the relegation zone and sees the contenders for retention getting closer, notably with Montpellier's victory against Brest.
Jorge Sampaoli ready to take over
Thus, the arrival of Jorge Sampaoli must act as a real shock in the eyes of the Rennes players who have not progressed for many months, as shown by the catastrophic results of Julien Stéphan. It must be said that the Argentinian is renowned for his leadership and his tough management on the man who made Olympique de Marseille successful a few years ago now in Ligue 1 but also in Europe.
An asset that the Stade Rennais players seem to be aware of, who seem delighted to see the former Argentina coach arrive in Brittany. This is at least the opinion of Baptiste Santamaria who is aware of the shortcomings of his teammates, particularly on the mental aspect.
“We’re going to have to revitalize all of that”
Indeed, while he was questioned by DAZN about the arrival of Sampaoli, the former Friborg midfielder gave a quick overview of the Rennes squad, while approving the management's decision to recruit him . “I think the arrival of Jorge Sampaoli is a good thing. We will have to energize all of that and I think that this is the character that he will offer us,” he declared in particular.
It remains to be seen whether the magic will work quickly as time runs out to see Rennes move up the rankings. As a reminder, Stade Rennais will face LOSC, AS Saint-Étienne and Nantes during the next three days of Ligue 1, after the international break.
Supporter of En Avant de Guingamp, the best of the Breton clubs, I prefer to meet Yannis Salibur, Cristophe Kerbrat or Jeremy Sorbon rather than Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi or Sergio Ramos.
