Edinson Cavani scored a penalty in the 84th minute to put Paris Saint-Germain up 5-0 but it was what happened leading up to his goal that made headlines.
After Kylian Mbappé drew the penalty in the 82nd minute, Neymar took the ball and handed it to Cavani and told him to take the shot. El Matador had just come on in the 68th minute and hadn’t scored a goal since mid-August against Stade Rennais.
Neymar quel homme, Cavani on oublie pas meilleur buteur du PSG ❤️💪🏽 pic.twitter.com/6ejQOiNsyF
— 7️⃣ (@7Joia) December 11, 2019
With the crowd singing his name, Cavani calmly scored and lifted a massive boulder off his shoulders. The Uruguayan has spent much of the season injured and with Mauro Icardi scoring seemingly at will, playing time has been hard to come by for PSG’s all-time leading scorer.
It was a somewhat easy decision for Neymar to make. You have to wonder if he would have done the same thing if the result of the match mattered and the scored was tied 1-1. Regardless, Neymar is often criticized for not being a team player and only caring about himself. This gesture is certainly one of the moments of the season in my opinion.
After the match, manager Thomas Tuchel was asked about Neymar’s generosity as reported by Le Parisien.
“It’s a good gesture of Neymar. I am very happy because I always say that he has a big heart and that he has to show it to everyone. He shows it every day in training and in every dialogue with me. Every one sees that he is sensitive. I hope it will be a symbol for the team this season.”
I couldn’t have said it better. This moment should bring the team together as one as they prepare to embark on the most important part of the season.
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