Soccer

Red hot Cavani draws closer to Ibrahimovic's PSG scoring record

Christian Hartmann / Reuters

If Edinson Cavani doesn’t seek the lucrative wages on offer in China, he could go on to set a goalscoring record at Paris Saint-Germain – and it was only set nine months ago.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic bagged the last of his 156 strikes in the Coupe de France victory over Marseille on May 21, 2016, but his old Uruguayan teammate is closing in on that tally after claiming the fourth in Tuesday’s Champions League 4-0 humiliation of Barcelona.

The near-post bash is Cavani’s 115th strike for Les Parisiens, as the former Napoli hitman revelled in the excellent work behind him from Marco Verratti, Blaise Matuidi, Adrien Rabiot, Julian Draxler, and, until his 61st-minute substitution, two-goal Angel Di Maria in a famous last-16 first leg.

It capped off an absolute rout and public shaming of Luis Enrique’s star-studded Barcelona at the Parc des Princes. Cavani’s extended his tear to seven straight appearances with a goal; he’s found the net 10 times in that spell.