Both sides go into this game high on confidence, with Saint Etienne hoping to extend the unbeaten run to six games and Rennes looking to record their fifth victory on the bounce.

After narrowly missing out on European qualification last term, les Verts made sure to reinforce the squad during off season and mount another challenge for Europa League places.

While Bakary Sako was the only notable departure, in came Brandao, Renaud Cohade, Francois Clerc and Romain Hamouma, but the team, nonetheless, needed some time to hit the ground running.

Saint Etienne recovered well from opening defeats to Lille and Toulouse as they went on to record back to back victories over Brest and Bastia, only to be beaten at home by Sochaux.

The team have raised their form since, having embarked on a five-match unbeaten run, and they are now 2.15 (23/20) with 888sport to see off Rennes and climb to the top half of the standings.

Starting centre-back Kurt Zouma is set to miss next couple of weeks with an ankle problem, but Francois Clerc is back in contention. Banel Nicolita, Jean Mignot and Ismael Diomande remain sidelined.

Probable starting line-up (4-2-3-1): Ruffier – Clerc, Perrin, Bayal, Brison – Lemoine, Clement – Hamouma, Cohade, Aubameyang – Brandao.

Rennes finished the previous league campaign three points above Saint Etienne, but one point behind European places, so they will have a big motive to make things right this time.

Even if the squad hadn’t undergone major changes in the summer, les Bretons endured a disappointing start to the season, losing four of their first five league games.

The team have shown a considerable improvement since and having won last four games in all competitions, they are 4.00 (3/1) with BetVictor to continue the impressive run.

It is important to note that Rennes have brought no less than seven points from last four visits to Stade Geoffroy-Guichard.

Yann M’Vila and Chris Mavinga have been dropped from the squad after causing an incident while on international duty, while Victor Montano and Abdoulaye Sane remain sidelined.

Probable starting line-up (4-2-3-1): Costil – Theophile-Catherine, Kana-Biyik, Boye, Apam – Makoun, Pajot – Danze, Feret, Pitroipa – Erding.