Mathys Silistrie to start for Rennes at Marseille, following Steve Mandanda and Brice Samba | OneFootball

Mathys Silistrie, 20, with one Ligue 1 appearance, will start in goal for Rennes at Marseille on Sunday at 21:00. Rennes could still end the season third, fourth, fifth or sixth, with the verdict due around 23:00.

According to L'Équipe, Brice Samba is suspended, so Silistrie steps up. Rennes also finished last season at Marseille, a 2-4 defeat in which Habib Beye gave Steve Mandanda, then 40, his final Ligue 1 seconds before the order changed.

Mandanda was not retained as Beye planned to promote Silistrie. His first professional deal, a one-year contract with an option, was announced on 4 June 2025, then extended through 2029 in January. He began at Normanville, progressed at Évreux FC 27, and was spotted by Rennes scout Armand Djiré at U13.

His parents moved to Rennes during his development. Coach Philippe Leclerc describes him as attentive and hard-working, a left-footed goalkeeper with a good passing game, adding that matches will decide, he should be calmer than at Lens, and he needs time to mature and impose himself.

Beye first used him in the Coupe de France, a 3-0 win at Les-Sables-d'Olonne on 21 December, then he started at Lens on 7 February in a 1-3 defeat, erring on Allan Saint-Maximin’s third. Valentin Rongier praised his reflexes and energy, while a National 3 run-out at Laval, a 1-0 win at the weekend, topped up preparations as Franck Haise’s side aim to hold fifth and weigh a loan or number two role.

Source: L'Équipe