London (AFP)
Chelsea easily took the best (3-0) on a combative Rennes until a severe expulsion of his side Dalbert at the end of the first period, which allows the Londoners to turn at the top of Group E at mid-term.
With 7 points, 7 goals scored, none conceded, the Blues are extremely well on their way to qualifying for the round of 16, especially as Seville ended up overcoming the Russians of Krasnodar (3-2), which places Andalusians in second position with the same number of points, but a goal difference of only +2.
Far behind, Rennes and Krasnodar, who have only one point in three matches, that of their draw (1-1) at Roazhon Park on the first day, seem promised to compete for third place which gives access to Round of 16 of the Europa League.
If the victory of the Londoners does not really suffer from dispute - Rennes having been too little dangerous - it is nevertheless hard to swallow for the Bretons.
Led from the 10th minute on a penalty from Timo Werner, which he had obtained for a foul by Dalbert, warned for the occasion (1-0), the match definitively changed to a decision taken after consulting the highly contested VAR .
On a shot from Tammy Abraham entering the box, the ball rebounded on Dalbert's leg then on his arms placed above his head.
Alerted by his colleagues in charge of the video, German referee Felix Zwayer not only designated the penalty point again, but gave Dalbert a second yellow card who left his teammates at 10 in the most total incomprehension.
Werner was quick to transform the penalty, already the 4th obtained this season in the Champions League by the Blues, and the 5th in a row that the German succeeds, for his last 5 goals in the competition (2-0 , 41st).
After that, all suspense had already faded, but Abraham tenured to compensate for the last minute package of German striker Kai Havertz, tested positive for Covid, did not hesitate to drive the point home after 5 minutes in the second act, a recovery to six meters on a perfect stretched cross from Reece James (3-0, 50th).
A deserved success for a Chelsea who took their French opponent very seriously, N'Golo Kanté being well established in the midfield and the central hinge being made up of Thiago Silva and Kurt Zouma, a doublet that ensured a fourth match immediately without taking a goal.
The scenario of the match allowed Frank Lampard to turn and offer Olivier Giroud, entered in the 63rd, his first minutes of C1 of the season.
For its part, Rennes, who had recovered Steven Nzonzi very valuable in the middle and who had missed so much in Seville (1-0), does not have to be ashamed of his general performance.
The French were able to hold the ball and bring it to life in an interesting way, even if it lacked sharpness in the last twenty meters.
It was not until the 84th minute to see Jérémy Doku overflow and cross for Clément Grenier who arrived launched.
But the midfielder came up against a nice save - one more - from their former teammate Edouard Mendy, who deprived them of a little comfort that would not have been stolen.
© 2020 AFP