PREVIEW: WEEKEND FRENCH ACTION Rich Fidler - Thursday, October 22, 2009
Rennes and defender Carlos Bocanegra will host first place Montpellier on Saturday at Stade de la Route-de-Lorient.
Rennes - Montpellier
Rennes will welcome Montpellier to their home stadium looking for a victory after playing three straight games without a win.
Rennes head coach Frédéric Antonetti will be able to count on the return of many players including Bocanegra, the American was suspended last week for a red card in their previous game. He'll also have the services of defender Kader Mangane, midfielder Fabien Lemoine, and striker Asamoah Gyan back for the game.
Swedish captain Petter Hansson is unavailable for the game due to injury, as is Jimmy Briand. Briand is out for the beginning of the season after tearing his ACL while training with the French National Team last March.
Montpellier comes in to the game having won three straight, including last weekend's 2-1 home victory over St Etienne. Their last, and only loss of the season, came on September 19th away to Marseille.
Head coach Rene Girard, who has been coaching with the French National Team since 1998, has guided the club to a fantastic start in his first season with the club after the team was promoted from Ligue 2 at the end of the 2008 campaign.
32-year old defender Nenad Džodić leads the team with the captains arm-band, although they will be without midfielder Rémy Cabella. The Frenchman injured his right knee and will be out of action for the next several months.
Notes
Sochaux hosts Lorient on Saturday without American striker Charlie Davies, who will undoubtedly miss the rest of the season due to injuries suffered in a recent automobile accident.
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