Atlético next up for ill-starred Rennes

Club Atlético de Madrid will look to secure first place in UEFA Europa League Group I against a Stade Rennais FC side already resigned to elimination. • Second-placed Udinese Calcio are two points behind Atlético, but can only overtake the Liga side if they win at home against Celtic FC and Rennes secure an unlikely victory in the Spanish capital. Previous meetings • Rennes were held to a 1-1 home draw when the sides met on matchday two, with Victor Montano's deflected 56th-minute effort cancelled out late on by a strike from Atlético substitute Juanfran (86). • Atlético's record in 11 games against French sides is W5 D5 L1 (W4 D1 L0 in Madrid). That sole defeat was a 4-2 loss at RC Lens in the UEFA Cup fourth round second leg on 9 March 2000 after a 2-2 draw in Spain. • Rennes' only previous taste of Spanish opponents came in a 2005/06 UEFA Cup first round tie with CA Osasuna, winning 3-1 at home and drawing 0-0 in Pamplona. Osasuna's then coach, Javier Aguirre, took over at Atlético the following season, leading the club from 2006 to 2009. • Aguirre was in charge for Atlético's most recent games against French opponents before this season, a 2-1 home win and a 0-0 away draw against Olympique de Marseille in the 2008/09 UEFA Champions League group stage. Match background • Atlético have won all four of their European home games this season, keeping clean sheets in the last three. • Rennes have a miserable record in the UEFA Cup and UEFA Europa League group stage. They have yet to win in 13 games in what is their third season in this phase of the competition, losing eight of those matches including all six of their away fixtures. Team facts • Atlético have scored 148 goals in the UEFA Cup and UEFA Europa League; this will be their 91st game. • Rennes midfielder Stéphane Dalmat played in Spain with Real Racing Club in 2005/06. • Atlético's Miranda and Tiago Mendes have both played in Ligue 1. Miranda represented FC Sochaux-Montbéliard in 2005/06, while Tiago won two league titles with Olympique Lyonnais from 2005 to 2007. • Rennes left-back Chris Mavinga and Atlético goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois were team-mates at KRC Genk earlier this year, winning the Belgian title together. • A coach since his late 20s, Atlético's Gregorio Manzano's most tangible achievement in football was guiding RCD Mallorca to the 2002/03 Copa del Rey. He took over at Atlético for a second time in the summer after a spell at Sevilla FC, who gave him a first taste of UEFA competition last season as he led them to the UEFA Europa League round of 32. • Once a player for SC Bastia in his native Corsica, Rennes coach Frédéric Antonetti took charge of Bastia, AS Saint-Étienne and OGC Nice before accepting his current job in 2009. This is his first season in European competition since leading Bastia from the UEFA Intertoto Cup to the second round of the UEFA Cup in 1997/98.