Preview: Rennes vs Lille - prediction, team news, lineups

Rennes welcome Lille to Roazhon Park on Sunday afternoon in round 10 of the 2026-27 Ligue 1 campaign.

In their previous league outing, Les Rouge et Noir fell to a disappointing 5-2 defeat against Nice at the Allianz Riviera, while Les Dogues snatched a late 1-0 win over Lens on home soil.

Match preview

After agonisingly falling short of ending their six-year UEFA Champions League absence last season, losing 3-1 to Marseille on the final weekend to finish just two points outside the automatic qualification places, Rennes will be fairly content with how they have begun their latest Ligue 1 campaign.

Franck Haise’s men started the season in emphatic fashion, claiming victory in three of their opening four league games to sit joint top of the Ligue 1 table in the middle of September, but having picked up just six points from their five games since, Sunday’s hosts have slipped to fifth and have just one win in their latest five matches in all competitions.

Despite boasting an unbeaten start to their endeavours on the continent, Les Rouge et Noir will be slightly disappointed with their position in the UEFA Europa League table too, with Haise’s side currently 17th in the standings after drawing three of their opening four fixtures.

Having failed to win any of their previous seven encounters with Lille at Roazhon Park, dating back to a 3-1 triumph on the final day of the 2018-19 season, Rennes will be desperate to rediscover their winning touch this Sunday by ending that barren run and returning to form.

Following a much improved 2025-26 Ligue 1 campaign in which they finished third and booked their place in the Champions League, having only managed Europa League qualification the year prior, Davide Ancelotti will be extremely happy with how his side have started the current season.

With just one league loss so far, falling to a narrow defeat against Nice at the Allianz Riviera in September, Les Dogues have accumulated 18 points from their nine matches and sit second in the Ligue 1 standings, behind only back-to-back European champions Paris Saint-Germain.

Over that span, Lille’s greatest strength has undoubtedly been their defensive solidity, with Sunday’s visitors keeping an impressive five clean sheets and conceding just six goals, a tally bettered by no other side inside France’s top three divisions.

Although much like their opposition, Les Dogues will be feeling extremely underwhelmed with their performances in Europe, as Tuesday evening’s goalless draw with Danish side Bodo/Glimt marks the first point Ancelotti’s men have earned in the competition this season, leaving them only above Slovan Bratislava at the foot of the Champions League standings.

However, having won three of the previous four meetings with Rennes, including an important 2-1 victory when they travelled to Roazhon Park in March, Lille will be confident of putting their European woes behind them on Sunday afternoon by claiming another three points in Ligue 1 and pushing towards Les Parisiens at the summit of the table.

Rennes Ligue 1 form:

Rennes form (all competitions):

Lille Ligue 1 form:

Lille form (all competitions):

Team News

Having netted seven goals in as many Ligue 1 games to start the season, Rennes will be hoping that Esteban Lepaul can finally make a return this weekend from an ankle injury that has kept him out of the previous month.

After missing Les Rouge et Noir’s previous league outing against Nice with a thigh issue, Brice Samba was back between the sticks during the week and is likely to start behind a back five including Bryan Reynolds, Charlie Cresswell and Mahamadou Nagida on Sunday.

Scoring three goals in his latest four matches in all competitions, Senegalese striker Boulaye Dia has stepped up as the hosts’ main goal threat in Lepaul’s absence and will be looking to add to his campaign tally of four Ligue 1 strikes against Lille.

Portuguese defender Tiago Santos and 24-year-old Moroccan Hamza Igamane are Lille’s only two confirmed absentees as they continue their recovery from cruciate ligament injuries, however the latter is expected to return in the coming months.

It remains to be seen whether Japanese forward Ayase Ueda features on Sunday after missing the previous month with a foot injury, though Ancelotti is likely to opt for either Olivier Giroud or Hakon Haraldsson through the middle regardless.

Algerian midfielder Nabil Bentaleb also missed Tuesday’s trip to Bodo/Glimt due to illness, making him a doubt for the weekend.

However, on a more positive note for the visitors, French defender Tanguy Nianzou is back available for selection on Sunday after serving a red card suspension against Lens and is almost certain to slot alongside Alexsandro at the back.

Rennes possible starting lineup:

Samba; Reynolds, Ait Boudlal, Cresswell, Rouault, Nagida; Thomasson, Rongier, Camara; Dia, Tamari

Lille possible starting lineup:

Ozer; Ngoy, Nianzou, Alexsandro, Perraud; Mukau, Kjaergaard, Andre; Mnappe, Haraldsson, Diaoune

We say: Rennes 1-2 Lille

With both sides enjoying promising starts to the 2026-27 Ligue 1 campaign, Sunday’s clash is bound to be one of the highlights of the weekend and could easily go either way.

However, despite their recent struggles in the Champions League, it is extremely difficult to ignore Lille’s current surge towards the Ligue 1 summit, and we are backing them to maintain the pressure on PSG by collecting all three points this weekend.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.