Paris: Neymar and Edinson Cavani, Paris St Germain’s (PSG) deadly double act, again delivered a goal apiece in a sluggish 2-0 victory over Troyes that took them 10 points clear of their Ligue 1 challengers here, Wednesday.
While their nearest chasers lost, Olympique Lyonnais succumbing 1-2 at home to struggling Lille and Monaco falling 0-1 at Nantes after a last-gasp Lucas Lima thunderbolt, PSG marched on without ever hitting top gear.
They left it late as a brilliant Neymar strike in the 73rd minute, his 15th PSG goal in all competitions, eased nerves at the Parc des Princes before the Brazilian set up Cavani, who had a first half penalty saved, to score in added on time.
The pair had a spirited debate over who should take the penalty, with Cavani winning the argument, but they worked in perfect harmony for the Uruguayan’s 23rd goal, stretching his lead as top marksman in Europe’s major leagues this season. The win took PSG to 41 points from 15 games.
PSG had seemed out of sorts against mid-table opponents they had hammered 9-0 in their last meeting when sealing the title in 2016, but looked to be in charge once Cavani earned the penalty with a theatrical fall under Karim Azamoum’s shirt tug.
Just as during a game against Lyon in September when the pair argued over who should take the set-piece duties, Cavani won the day but his 40th minute spot-kick was saved by Mamadou Samassa, who was way off his line as the ball was struck.
Agencies
