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Rennes put Thursday's UEFA Cup disappointment behind them thanks to Alexander Frei's strike in a 1-0 win over 10-man Nice.
The Brittany club crashed out of Europe after losing their third straight group match, 1-0 to Shakhtar Donetsk, but they did their hopes of returning to the continental stage a world of good with three points that take them up to seventh in the standings.
They hardly had things their own way against opponents who held Lyon to a draw last time out, however, and it was the visitors who started the brightest on a wet evening at the Stade de la Route de Lorient.
Nice even had the ball in Simon Pouplin's net following Marama Vahirua's corner on 10 minutes, yet the goal was ruled out for a foul on the home side's stand-in goalkeeper. Frédéric Antonetti's men continued to attack, though, with Cyril Rool and Mamadou Bagayoko trying their luck before Sammy Traoré headed another Vahirua corner just wide of the post.
Rool then forced Pouplin into making a fairly comfortable save but Rennes finally roused themselves towards the end of the first period when John Utaka turned Olivier Monterrubio's cross into the net - only to have his effort disallowed for offside.
There was no doubt who had the upper hand, however, and Nice saw out the rest of the half in control of proceedings. Vahirua, Rool and Bagayoko were a constant thorn in the hosts' defence and, although they had yet to create any serious chances, it seemed highly unlikely they would return home with nothing to show for their efforts.
But all that changed in the space of nine minutes after the restart as Cameroonian defender Bill Tchato picked up two quick yellow cards, the second for a clumsy foul on Olivier Monterrubio. It was the 30-year-old's second dismissal this season and it was to prove costly for his teammates.
Indeed, three minutes later they found themselves a goal down as Swiss striker Frei headed in a cross from the right for his fifth strike this season. It was a cruel turn of events for the courageous Côte d'Azur outfit and Antonetti could hardly contain his anger on the touch line as his players struggled to claw their way back into the match.
Making the most of their numerical advantage, Rennes saw out the rest of the encounter without too much difficulty, sitting back and attacking on the break. Utaka fired wide from distance at one end, Rod Fanni did the same for Nice at the other, but there were to be no more breakthroughs and Antonetti's side remain a fairly precarious seven points clear of the relegation zone in 15th.
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