Lyon roll into the Parc Olympique Lyonnais on a genuine high. Eight points banked, fifth in Ligue 1, and a gritty 1-2 win at Anderlecht in Europe midweek — that is the mark of a side building real momentum under Paulo Fonseca. The recent home win over Auxerre, a 3-2 thriller, tells you this team can win ugly when needed, and the Sports Mole crew are backing them to make it consecutive victories for the first time this season. That is the smell of a team on the rise, and the international break looms as extra motivation to climb into the Champions League places.

Rennes arrive with a fully available squad — Franck Haise has options, and that matters. But the away form is the question mark. Their recent trip to Angers at the Stade Raymond-Kopa was a grind, and while the squad depth is there, the road has not been kind. Djaoui Cisse is slowly recovering from a groin issue but lacks full match fitness and will almost certainly miss the trip to Lyon. That is a real absence in the engine room. Haise will set up to frustrate, but Lyon's recent habit of finding a way — the Anderlecht win, the Auxerre comeback — gives the hosts the sharper edge right now.