Resurgent Rennes restore lost pride

Stade Rennais FC sprung the surprise of the Ligue 1 season on Saturday when they beat champions-elect Olympique Lyonnais 4-1 at the Stade Gerland.

Rennes revival
French football followers had been wondering what happened to the team that finished fourth last term, clinching a UEFA Cup berth for the first time in their history. However, Rennes's 2004/05 form returned in dramatic style as they dealt Lyon only their second loss in all competitions this season and climbed to eleventh place in the table.

Utaka record
Nigerian striker John Utaka stole the limelight with his second hat-trick in as many games, equalling a feat only previously achieved by Just Fontaine and Michel Platini in 74 years of top-flight soccer in France. "Those goals are the result of a team effort," said the former RC Lens forward, who joined Rennes in 2004. Utaka's first treble came against Lens last weekend, when his side again ran out 4-1 winners to end a five-match losing streak.

Safety measure
"My players have done what I expected of them," said coach Laszlo Bölöni. "I'm happy for the club. They were very efficient and this was a superb personal achievement for Utaka. We also came up against a Lyon side who were probably tired after their UEFA Champions League game at PSV Eindhoven." This latest success was Rennes's fifth away victory of the campaign and they now need just four points to reach the target that president Emmanuel Cueff and owner François Pinault set the team at the beginning of the season.

Frei absence
Saturday's win also came without striker Alexander Frei. Ligue 1's leading scorer in 2004/05 has been sidelined since January with a groin injury and the Swiss international is likely to be out for a further two months. Utaka, though, is clearly thriving in his team-mate's absence. "It was a nice game," said midfielder Youssouf Hadji. "But we did not change league places with Lyon on Saturday. If we want to make this victory better we need to start a winning run. A home win [on 4 March] against [RC] Strasbourg would be perfect."

European failure
It would also help to compensate for the disappointment of Rennes's failure to reach the UEFA Cup knockout stages. Having overcome CA Osasuna in the first round, the group stage proved too steep a learning curve as they lost all four Group G fixtures. "We learned a lot from that experience," said France Under-21 midfielder Etienne Didot. Lyon coach Gérard Houllier will hope his side's mauling at the weekend proves to be similarly enlightening.