Third-placed Rennes lost further ground in the Ligue 1 title race as they were held to a goalless home draw by fourth-bottom Auxerre. Frederic Antonetti's side have seen their tilt at the French crown dented in recent weeks by a 2-0 home loss to Marseille and a 1-1 draw with Lyon.
They showed little sign of getting back on track tonight as they failed to break down their struggling visitors, who grew in confidence and posed the greater threat towards the end.
Roy Contout attempted to give Auxerre the lead in spectacular style in the sixth minute, but was foiled on two counts as Rennes goalkeeper Nicolas Douchez pulled off an excellent reflex save and then the referee blew for offside.
The hosts' first chance arrived in the 22nd minute when Razak Boukari picked up the ball on the edge of the area and quickly got away a fierce shot, only to see it blocked. Rennes went close again two minutes before half-time when John Verhoek nodded Jerome Leroy's free-kick towards Romain Danze, but he just failed to provide the vital touch.
Les Rouges et Noirs continued their pursuit for the opener after the break with Leroy just off target with his attempted lob over Olivier Sorin in the 54th minute. They had things far from all their own way, though, and Auxerre created the better of the game's chances in the final quarter.
Traore released Dennis Oliech just before the hour, but Douchez came out on top in their one-on-one duel. Rennes substitute Tongo Doumbia then made a crucial clearance from Traore's free-kick and Douchez denied Jeremy Berthod, but there was no breakthrough.