Three months and eleven days that he did not put his nose out. Confined since March 9 in his home in Argentina, Carlos Bianchi, 71, nevertheless keeps an eye on French news.
While waiting to reach Paris, where he lives half the year, the five-time top scorer in the French Championship (three times with Reims, twice with PSG), explains why he considers Edinson Cavani as a Parisian legend in despite its few shortcomings.
Is it fair to say, even before the end of his adventure in Paris, that Edinson Cavani has marked the history of PSG?
CARLOS BIANCHI. But of course, how do you want it to be otherwise? Cavani is the player who has scored the most goals in club history and will leave an indelible mark. He is a great striker, a very good goalscorer, he put his claw on Paris.
What are its main qualities?
It is one of the most generous center forward I have seen. Deep down, of course, he likes to score and is drawn to the goal like any great striker. But it has another specificity: that of wanting to be useful to the team. Sometimes it causes him to pass too much. But whatever. When a goal scorer has a bad game, we usually say that he stayed at home or in the locker room. This is the kind of remark that does not stick to Cavani because, even if he does not score, his generosity is always useful to the team.
Despite his status as top scorer in Parisian history, Cavani is often singled out for his lack of realism ...
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When I watch him play, I see that he likes to score and that he has the qualities to do so. But I don't know if he has all the facets of a great goal scorer. Sometimes it makes me feel like I am lacking composure when an opportunity is too easy. He is not the only one of course, it happens to everyone. Kylian Mbappé is also wasting opportunities. But, in my time, when we had two opportunities, we had to put both at the bottom because we didn't have much more. Today the attackers have more opportunities in a game and I feel like it is easier for them to score. But that doesn't change anything from my point of view: for me, Cavani is the player who has rendered the most services to PSG as a center-forward.
Where do you place it in the hierarchy of PSG legends?
It's hard to say, it's all a matter of taste. For me, the equation is simple: Cavani is the best since he scored the most goals. I understand that we can have a different opinion and be based on other criteria. We can also blame him for sometimes "eating the leaf". But who has never done it? Yes, he may miss a goal or two from time to time, but he is not idle. He is not a lazy person, one cannot accuse him of walking on a ground.
Has he definitively dethroned Pauleta in the hearts of supporters?
I haven't seen enough of Pauleta playing, it's difficult for me to talk about it and make comparisons. But if, me, with my two seasons (Editor's note: 71 goals) , I stayed a little in the hearts of the supporters, I am sure that Cavani, with his seven years and his status as top scorer in history, will stay there forever engraved. And it makes sense!
PODCAST. Edinson Cavani, top scorer in PSG history: the journey of an anti-star
Why does the public love it so much?
Because he shows rare generosity. Like that, without thinking, only Forlan and Suarez ride as much, show such combativeness on a field. As a coach, what I ask a striker is to score goals. It does not interest me that he makes small bridges, assists or run from one corner to another of the field. When he's on the lawn, I want him to score, do his job and be good in his area. He also knows how to do that.
Would it be a mistake not to extend it at the end of the season?
This is not for me to say. I prefer not to get involved, this is not my playground.