All smiles at the door of his car, Edinson Cavani accepts autographs and selfies before entering the parking lot of the training center. This Friday afternoon, the Uruguayan striker still does not seem to have come down from the cloud on which he sent his 200th goal in the Paris jersey, scored last Sunday against Bordeaux (4-3).
At 33 since February 14 and a birthday party shared with Mauro Icardi and Angel Di Maria, Edinson Cavani seems to have finished his way of the cross. Barred by the Argentinian rookie, injured in the thigh and then in the pubis, he was gradually heading towards a departure from Atlético de Madrid at the end of January before negotiations broke down at the last moment.
Before facing Dijon on Saturday at the Parc (5:30 p.m.), back on the front of the stage and especially of the Parisian attack "El Matador" for which Michel Montana, speaker of the Parc des Princes, had the name chanted nine times, " like his number "to celebrate his 200 Parisian goals. Thomas Tuchel, the Parisian coach, intends to ride the wave of confidence from his scorer. Asked how to revive Icardi without breaking Cavani's dynamics, the German technician first pretended to be annoyed.
"It's always the same question," he sighed. Before I was asked: why Edi is on the bench and Mauro is playing? The answer was: because he scored goals. With everyone it's like that. But with the attackers, it's even more like that: when they are decisive, they stay on the field, it's clear. "
He has his destiny in hand
In this new duel to know who will have the privilege of supporting Kylian Mbappé on the front of the Parisian attack for the rest of the season and in particular against Dortmund, on March 11, Cavani's defensive quality could be another determining asset. "Yes of course, that's his strength," admits Thomas Tuchel. His physical capacity is a great advantage for him. But Mauro (Icardi) is also very intelligent and very disciplined. In my eyes, the two have somewhat the same influence defensively. This is very important for Dortmund. "
And the German coach to clarify his current problem. “For me, between the two, it's more a feeling of who can start and who can enter the field. Edi scored a very important goal against Lyon (4-2) and registered his 200th at the Parc. It gives a lot of confidence. Now is not the time for me to stop it. "
PSG Express
The essential newsletter for Parisian supportersI'm registering
Your email address is collected by Le Parisien to allow you to receive our news and commercial offers. Find out more
Between the meetings against Dijon, Lyon and Strasbourg, Cavani therefore has a large part of his destiny in hand. But it would be enough for Icardi to score at each of its coming into play - as against Bordeaux with a goal finally refused for an offside by Mbappé - to return to the dance in anticipation of the knockout stages of the Champions League return against Dortmund, the 11th of March. In a team reduced by injuries and suspensions, a little competition in such a strategic position is not unwelcome.