Stade Rennais defender Quentin Merlin has been omitted from manager Franck Haise’s matchday squad for the Ligue 1 fixture against Paris FC and sent to play with the club’s reserve team in National 2.
The Descent to National 2
The decision marks a sharp decline for the 24-year-old left-back. Recruited for €13 million from Olympique de Marseille in the summer of 2025, Merlin arrived in Rennes as a regular starter who had previously drawn mention as a potential candidate for the France national team alongside Adrien Truffert. While Truffert moved to Bournemouth in the summer of 2025, Merlin’s trajectory in Brittany stalled after he struggled to impress in his three early-season league starts against Le Mans, Angers, and Lyon. Merlin, of course, has endured some difficult evenings, notably during the heavy 4-0 defeat away to Lyon in September.
𝗘𝗻 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 🫡De retour à la Piverdière, Franck Haise aux commandes de son premier entraînement avec les Rouge et Noir 📍 pic.twitter.com/kEQ1FqE9uE
Merlin asked to play with the reserve squad hosting ASPTT Caen rather than remain idle after missing league fixtures, including last week’s 4-1 victory over AJ Auxerre.
Squad Configuration and Upcoming Match
At Stade Rennais B, Merlin joins a youth-oriented setup featuring players predominantly born between 2006 and 2009. He shares a dressing room with Chibuike Ugochukwu, younger brother of his former France U21 teammate Lesley Ugochukwu. The reserve side sits fifth in its National 2 group with eight points from two wins and two draws, trailing league leaders Cesson by five points.
Meanwhile, the senior squad travels to Stade Jean-Bouin to face Paris FC on Sunday, October 18, 2026, at 5:15 PM for the seventh round of Ligue 1, a fixture broadcast after publication by Media365 on Sunday, October 18, 2026, at 9:45 AM. Franck Haise’s 21-player traveling group for the fixture includes goalkeepers Belazzoug, Le Page, and Samba; defenders Frankowski, Reynolds, Cresswell, Rouault, Aït Boudlal, and Nagida; midfielders Rongier, Thomasson, M. Camara, Djaoui Cissé, Szymanski, and Blas; and forwards Al-Tamari, Dia, Lepaul, Mayenda, I. Soumaré, and Nordin. Henrick Do Marcolino is also absent from the squad alongside Merlin.
Managerial Stance on Competition
Addressing Merlin’s absence in a pre-match press conference, Haise emphasized that roster spots remain tied to daily application. There is competition, that’s also part of their job and what matters is that he continues—him or others—to make enough efforts and be efficient enough in training so that he can at some point return to the group, to come on and be a starter,
Haise said.
Rennes enters the weekend occupying fourth place in Ligue 1 with 13 points, while Paris FC sits sixth with 11 points. Since Haise took charge in February, Rennes has recorded 37 league goals—the highest attacking output in Ligue 1 over that span—and collected 38 points, trailing only Lille’s 40 points in the same period. In case of a victory, the Breton club would provisionally move to the top of the standings ahead of Lille, PSG, and Monaco, which plays later in the afternoon at Lorient. Rennes has taken 23 points at home, more than Paris FC’s 22, while conceding 38 away goals in Ligue 1 since the start of last season, including four against Lyon in their most recent away trip.
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