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Panathinaikos will host Stade Rennais at the Apóstolos Nikolaïdis Stadium on Thursday in another round of the 2023-24 UEFA Europa League campaign.
The home side have had an encouraging start to their continental campaign, kicking things off with a 2-0 victory over La Liga outfit Villarreal featuring goals from Fotis Ioannidis and Andraz Sporar. They then held on for a goalless draw against Maccabi Haifa in their second match despite failing to register a single shot on target throughout the game.
Panathinaikos sit atop the Group F standings with four points from an obtainable six. They are just one point above their midweek opponents in third place and will be looking to widen that gap on Thursday.
Stade Rennais, meanwhile, beat Maccabi Haifa 3-0 in their group opener last month with three different players getting on the scoresheet including summer arrival Bertug Yildirim who scored his maiden goal for the club.
They were then beaten 1-0 by Villarreal in their next game and perhaps deserved more from the game but were guilty of wasteful finishing including a squandered penalty kick in additional time.
Panathinaikos vs Stade Rennais Head-to-Head and Key Numbers
- Thursday's game will mark the first-ever meeting between Panathinaikos and Rennes.
- The home side have had 13 meetings against French opposition in European competitions. They have won four of those games, drawn three times and lost the other six.
- The visitors' last meeting against Greek opposition came back in the 2005-06 campaign when they faced PAOK in a Europa League group-stage clash which they lost 5-1.
- Rennes are without a clean sheet in their last four games across all competitions.
- Panathinaikos are one of three teams in the Europa League this season yet to concede a goal.
Panathinaikos vs Stade Rennais Prediction
Panathinaikos are on a four-game unbeaten run and have lost just one of their last eight games across all competitions. They have, however, won just two of their last five home matches and could struggle here.
Rennes on the other hand are on a three-game losing streak and have won just two of their last 10 games across all competitions. They are without a win on the road this season and could see defeat here.
Prediction: Panathinaikos 2-1 Stade Rennais
Panathinaikos vs Stade Rennais Betting Tips
Tip 1 - Result: Panathinaikos to win
Tip 2 - Goals - Over/under 2.5 - Over 2.5 goals (Four of the hosts' last five matches have produced more than 2.5 goals)
Tip 3 - Both teams to score: YES (Both sides have found the back of the net in three of the visitors' last four matches)
