In news that is sure to dominate a good portion of Parisian newspaper headlines this week, an incident in Paris Saint-Germain’s Champions League clash for Serie A side Napoli at the Parc des Princes did not come through a goal but rather an altercation between two teammates of the home sides.
There were simply sensational scenes in just the second minute of the evening’s kick-off, as PSG found themselves on the attack.
Wunderkind Kylian Mbappe was provided space on the right of the pitch, produced some trickery to leave Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly eating his dust, then punched the ball into the middle of the box where both PSG forwards Edinson Cavani and Neymar were waiting.
Whilst - once again - Mbappe’s obvious target was the Brazilian Neymar, Cavani tried to seize the opportunity to put the home side ahead. Instead, the Uruguayan went clattering into Neymar’s ankles; a bad tackle if it had been instigated by an opposing player that would have almost certainly received disciplinary action.
Visibly gobsmacked by his teammate’s interference, Neymar was seen hobbling off the pitch whilst the ball was cleared by Napoli away from the danger area.
Cavani remained on the ground temporarily.
The two’s rivalry and apparent incompatibility to remain in the same team away from their goalscoring prowess as been well-documented.
Following Neymar’s sensational record-breaking move to the France capital from Barcelona over a year ago, tempers subsequently flared between the two during a Ligue 1 match with Olympique Lyonnais. An argument over who should take a penalty, which followed an earlier incident over who should have been allowed to show their prowess at free-kicks had to be brokered by numerous teammates, with then-manager Unai Emery consequently having to come out in the press to instruct them to sort out their issues.
This incident in the Champions League won’t subside increasing speculation that the two talented marksmen just don’t get on.
Intentional or accidental by Cavani? You decide by watching the footage of the astonishing moment below.
