Charlie Cresswell backs himself to win with Rennes and dreams of England call-up ahead of Juventus clash

Cresswell chose France to grow – and wants to win

"Leaving England is such a scary, scary decision," says Charlie Cresswell. It is a decision he never thought he would make. His father Richard made a career as a journeyman footballer in England, his brother Alfie was coming through Leeds' academy, and Charlie was already on the fringes of the Yorkshire club's first team when the chance to join Toulouse arrived in 2024.

"That was the biggest decision I made in football," he says. "I've been a Leeds fan since I was eight. I'd been at the club since I was 10 but, looking back, I was 20 years old with no games, and I needed to get out and go play."

A loan spell at Millwall did not open the door for him, and he made just 14 appearances for Leeds' senior side. Opportunities came in England, but he chose France. At Toulouse, the defender was a mainstay, starting 57 times in Ligue 1 across two seasons before his move to Rennes last summer. "I had options to go back to England," he says. Brighton had been linked with the former England youth international, but the decision to stay in France was made after a discussion with his partner.

Cresswell insists proving a point to Leeds is not his motivation. "I think of it like I'm here doing my job, working as hard as I can, making a career for myself."

Rennes raise the bar

Rennes are aiming for the Champions League places, a step up from the midtable life Toulouse had enjoyed. "There's that expectation to win games," says the 24-year-old centre-back. "That was important for the next step. I was picking the right place where I can grow again and keep improving. And the next step for me was to play in Europe and especially to have that expectation to win because, with where I want to go, I'm going to need to build that know-how of how to win games under pressure."

He knows several people at the club from his Leeds days, including Raphinha, Joe Rodon, Glen Kamara and Djed Spence, a former England Under-21 teammate who spent time on loan at Roazhon Park from Tottenham. None of them needed to sell the club to him. "It's a club that sells itself," he says.

Rennes are unbeaten in the Europa League this season, with one win and one draw. Asked how far they can go, Cresswell is unequivocal: "No limits, there are no limits. It would be stupid to put limits on ourselves. Why not? We can say that we can win it."

A huge night in Turin

"It's always been my biggest, biggest dream to play for my country. All I can do is carry on working."

A trip to Juventus awaits on Thursday, and it is no exaggeration to say it is the biggest game of his career. Cresswell has excelled in Ligue 1, particularly against PSG earlier this season, and a strong European showing could help him force his way into the England conversation. He can point to Jarell Quansah (Bayer Leverkusen) and Trevoh Chalobah (Como) as examples of players earning chances while performing abroad. "It gives you hope. It gives you motivation that, if you're doing well abroad and in Europe, they'll give you a look, and they'll give you a chance," says Cresswell, a two-time European champion with the Under-21s.

Ligue 1 has built a reputation as a league where young players develop. Cresswell feels he has "come on leaps and bounds as a player" since moving to France. "And I feel like I've got so much more to improve on, which is exciting."

Lepaul the 'Jamie Vardy of France'

In training, Cresswell is pushed hardest by Rennes forward Esteban Lepaul, who was Ligue 1's top scorer last season and leads the charts again this time around. He has also recently earned his first France caps. "I call him the Jamie Vardy of France," jokes Cresswell, referring to Lepaul's route from dropping out of Lyon's academy to climbing back through amateur football in his mid-twenties. "He's always ready for that chance. I see it in training as well. He hits the ball so hard; he's a killer in front of goal."

Asked whether Rennes could mount a title challenge, Cresswell takes a philosophical line. "I don't really think about where we'll finish. I think about what's going to happen at the weekend and how we need to go about doing our best against the next game, and then the next game. It's never about looking at where I'm going to be in 10 months or at the end of the season, because that's not the fun bit. The fun bit is the journey."

He may one day return to England, but that is not on his mind. "I'm not rushing back at all. I'm not looking at it as 'I'm here to go back.' No, I'm here to work and I'm here to win."

Ligue 1 context: PSG, Paris FC and the table

Elsewhere in Ligue 1, PSG came from behind to beat Strasbourg 3-1, with Ousmane Dembélé's late goal sealing the comeback. In the game of the weekend, Paris FC beat Rennes 4-3 at the Stade Jean Bouin, with Lassine Sinayoko scoring a injury-time penalty after Esteban Lepaul had scored three penalties for Rennes. Rennes sit sixth in the table on 13 points after seven matches, while Lyon, PSG, Paris FC and Lille share the top with 14 points each.