Rennes vs Chelsea result: Five things we learned as Blues seal progress to Champions League knock-outs
Rennes 1-1 Chelsea: Hudson-Odoi’s finish is cancelled out by Guirassy’s header
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Your support makes all the difference.Chelsea secured a 2-1 injury-time win at Rennes to secure their progression to the last 16 of the Champions League.
Mason Mount split the defence with one pass from deep and Callum Hudson-Odoi raced through to finish one-on-one midway through the first half. Ben Chilwell almost gifted Rennes an equaliser with a short back-pass, but Thiago Silva recovered to spare his team-mate.
READ MORE: Champions League fixtures and standings — all matches by date and kick-off time
After the break Timo Werner quickly had a headed effort ruled out for offside, but it was a much tighter affair overall - with the French side going close on a few occasions and taking until the final five minutes to find an equaliser through Sehrou Guirassy’s powerful header.
But just when it looked as though Chelsea had missed out on an away win, Olivier Giroud rose highest to head home a rebound, a minute into stoppage time.
Here are five things we learned from the game on Tuesday night.
Flying the homegrown flag
There was particular consternation this summer that, after a season of giving young players the chance to show their worth, a spending spree would see Chelsea’s homegrown youngsters discarded for the most part.
That hasn’t been the case with Frank Lampard’s side, with some of his most regular players either from the academy or English players in general, a real positive for the national team’s prospects.
In previous years there haven’t been huge volumes of opportunities for English players to be playing prominent roles at top teams in European competition - but at Liverpool and Man United that’s definitely not the case right now, Spurs and Arsenal contribute similarly in the Europa League and Chelsea had four English starters on show here.
Tammy Abraham, Ben Chilwell, Mason Mount and Callum Hudson-Odoi have all been in and around the international set-up and gaining experience in this type of match is all part of the improvement path.
Chances for CHO
Hudson-Odoi has had to be extremely patient this year, with injury, inconsistency and then new signings all hampering his chances of game time at Chelsea at different moments.
He was in the lineup in France though, on the right side of the front three, and didn’t take long to make his mark on the game with a clever run, good first touch and composed finish to open the scoring.
Goal aside, this was a disciplined and diligent display rather than an electric and creative one - which shouldn’t be taken as a negative.
He tracked his runner, offered himself as an out-ball, kept hold of possession and didn’t wildly swing over pointless crosses - it was mature rather than spectacular, a performance to keep him in Lampard’s thoughts rather than one to demand he keeps his place, and above all else it was a performance the match - and the team - required.
Mendy’s return to Roazhon Park
With the emphasis on the Blues’ attacking capabilities, it’s important to focus on the defensive side of the team which has been impressive too.
Mendy made routine stops and reflex saves, took aerial balls and low cut-backs, was reliable with passing out and offered plenty of assurance to those ahead. It has been the case since he arrived and he has already proven an excellent acquisition.
He was beaten eventually, but there was nothing the goalkeeper could do - Guirassy was left unmarked from a corner and his header was a bullet, just the third goal Mendy has conceded in a Chelsea shirt.
Before that, though, he made a great stop with his feet from another close-range effort and smothered more than one through-pass.
Starlet watch
From the perspective of the Ligue 1 side, the excitement in their qualifying for the Champions League comes from the number of young talents at their disposal.
Summer signing Jeremy Doku is a big prospect, and showed flashes of the speed and trickery which make him so dangerous.
Eduardo Camavinga was neat on the ball, progressive with his movements and looked to have a shot or two when possible, though it wasn’t the most impactful of nights overall.
And left-back Adrien Truffert was exciting as an outlet and reasonably solid defensively, while he’s a stand-in for the even more exciting Faitout Maouassa.
Progression assured
In a season of such a busy schedule, reaching the knock-outs two games early is a massive boost for Chelsea.
Frank Lampard knows now that not only will he have a chance to improve on last season’s European performance, he can also aim to fare better domestically be resting his key names in the next two midweek game weeks in the Champions League.
Fringe players will get game time, starters will be handed a valuable rest and the overall balance of the team should be easier to manage for the boss.
Three wins from four has proven enough for early qualification, now Chelsea must not waste the extra rest they’ve been handed.
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