Stade Rennais’ early-season struggles deepened after a heavy Coupe de France defeat by Marseille, with head coach Habib Beye delivering a blunt assessment of why results have deserted his side.
The Breton club were beaten 3-0 by Olympique de Marseille in the round of 16 on Tuesday, February 3, extending a run of damaging losses that has cast a shadow over the start of the calendar year.
Coming just days after a bruising 4-0 league defeat by Monaco, the cup exit marked a third consecutive setback and underlined growing concerns about Rennes’ defensive resilience.
Across those three matches, Rennes have conceded nine goals, a statistic that Beye believes makes any ambition of winning matches unrealistic.
Speaking after the defeat, the former Senegal international refused to soften his message, choosing instead to confront what he described as a fundamental problem at the heart of his team’s performances.
“If we concede so many goals, it’s because we’re making mistakes. In matches like this, we can’t afford to make them,” Beye told beIN Sports, as reported by Le Soleil Sports. He added: “In these situations, we cannot hope to win.”
The coach’s analysis was deliberately uncompromising. Rather than pointing to refereeing decisions or misfortune, Beye framed the issue in simple, almost mathematical terms: repeated individual and collective errors inevitably lead to defeat, regardless of tactical plans or attacking intent. For a side competing at the top end of Ligue 1, he suggested, such lapses are unacceptable.
Yet Beye’s assessment was not entirely bleak. Despite the scoreline against Marseille, he highlighted aspects of Rennes’ overall play that offered encouragement.
The coach said he was “proud” of his players’ contribution in the build-up phases, even while acknowledging that the final result was “harsh but [that’s] the reality of football”.
The contrast between promising passages of play and costly defensive moments has become a defining feature of Rennes’ recent run.
Currently sixth in Ligue 1, Rennes find themselves at a pivotal moment in their season. The immediate fixture list offers little respite, with a home meeting against second-placed Lens followed by a trip to face league leaders Paris Saint-Germain.
Those matches will test both the team’s confidence and their capacity to respond to criticism.
For Beye, the path forward is clear. Rennes must retain the positive elements of their performance while eradicating the “big mistakes” that have repeatedly undermined them. Until that balance is found, he has warned, victories will remain out of reach.
