Our Player of the Week accolade is this week awarded to the endeavours of Paris Saint-Germain’s superstar Neymar Jr, who played a pivotal role in his side’s 4-0 home victory over Montpellier as they bounced back from a surprise 2-1 defeat to Lyon in the previous round of games.
With Montpellier troubling France’s top six side’s across the campaign, there was a degree of trepidation for the hosts as they licked the wounds gained in Lyon.
However, any suggestion of an upset was quickly put to rest as PSG categorically blew away their visitors in an exhilarating performance at the Parc des Princes, with Neymar front and centre of many of the home side’s best periods of play.
The hosts opened play early on in the tie when Neymar picked up an angled long ball from Thiago Silva, before feeding in Rabiot who in turn put it on a plate for Edinson Cavani to bury from close range.
Neymar then doubled the score in the 40th minute, calmly slotting home from the spot after Mendes was deemed to have handled Julian Draxler’s effort on goal.
He then doubled his account when he bagged PSG’s fourth for the day – guiding home a ball from Cavani into an unguarded net to round off an incisive counter attacking move that cut through the heart of a stretched Montpellier side looking to gain a foothold back in the fixture.
The brace of goals saw Neymar bag eight points from the weekend, the most of any player in Ligue 1.
The winger hasn’t disappointed since his world record move, leading the attacking line for the Parisians with an exuberant manner that only a Brazilian could.
His 17 goals and 11 assists from 16 appearances represents an exceptional return of 86 points that is only matched by team mate Cavani within Ligue 1.
The Parisians now sit in a commanding position atop of the Ligue 1 table, with Lyon’s 3-1 defeat away to Bordeaux meaning they failed to capitalise on their win over Les Rouge-et-Bleu.
A now seemingly insurmountable eleven point gap now separates PSG from the rest of the division, and Neymar and Co. will surely be looking to turn their attention to the other tournaments from which they could gain silverware – including the illustrious Champions League.
PSG’s next fixture sees them travel to relegation candidates Lille, a game that Neymar will be hoping he can once again put his stamp on as his side look to consolidate their league position and reclaim the domestic title.
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