Ligue 1: Cavani, Neymar key as PSG rebound from Madrid gloom

Paris SaintGermains Uruguayan forward Edinson Cavani celebrates after scoring during the French Ligue 1 football match between Paris SaintGermain PSG and Strasbourg at The Stade de France in SaintDenis PicAFPEdinson Cavani struck twice as Paris SaintGermain beat Strasbourg 52 on Saturday to relieve some of the pressure on the runaway Ligue 1 leaders following their Champions League defeat at Real Madrid Strasbourg struck early through Jean Eudes Aholou but PSG hit back courtesy of a Julian Draxler effort before two goals in as many minutes from Neymar and Angel Di Maria put the home side in controlStephane Bahoken pulled one back midway through the second half as Strasbourg threatened an unlikely comeback but Cavanis leaguebest 22nd and 23rd goals of the season ensured victory for Unai Emerys team Captain Thiago Silva and Di Maria were recalled after Emery faced criticism for dropping them for the 31 loss in Madrid and the coach was whistled by a section of home supporters unhappy with the Spaniards decisions in midweek Neymar was largely overshadowed by Cristiano Ronaldo in Spain on Wednesday but the Brazilian could have struck within 90 seconds at the Parc des Princes when he was denied the legs of Strasbourg goalkeeper Alexandre OukidjaThe visitors who inflicted PSGs first defeat of the season in early December sprang another surprise by grabbing the lead on six minutes following a clinical counterattack Neymar was guilty of overplaying and lost possession allowing Strasbourg to break with great effect the move finishing off with Aholou steering home a precise firsttime finish from Kenny Lalas cross PSG responded quickly though as an intended pass through from Neymar was diverted straight into the path of Draxler who swept low into the far corner for his first league goal in over three monthsQuickfire strikesThe hosts promptly surged ahead as Neymar picked out lurking on the far side of the box by Giovani Lo Celso exhibited terrific composure and a deft touch to eliminate two defenders and tap home after his initial effort was kept out by Oukidja A dreadful lapse of concentration from Pablo Martinez then allowed Di Maria to pinch the ball from the centreback within seconds of the restart and drill beyond Oukidja for PSGs third Oukidja shovelled away a powerful Cavani header and Di Maria fluffed a glorious chance to extend the lead after Dani Alves had squared for the Argentine but Bahoken gave Strasbourg a lifeline as he guided home from the edge of the box on 67 minutesHowever Cavani allayed fears of another late PSG collapse with a clever chipped finish over the advancing Oukidja and the Uruguayan struck again 11 minutes from time after latching on to an assist from Neymar Defending champions Monaco eased to a 40 home win over Dijon on Friday as 16yearold Pietro Pellegri eclipsed Kylian Mbappe to become the youngest player in the clubs history The win which saw Pellegri at 16 years 10 months and 30 days beat Mbappes previous record set in December 2015 kept secondplaced Monaco 12 points behind PSG Lyon will look to arrest a threematch losing streak away to Lille on Sunday while thirdplaced Marseille can return to within a point of Monaco if they beat a resurgent Bordeaux at the VelodromeCatch up on all the latest sports news and updates here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updatesThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Except for the change in headline the story has been provided ASIS AS AVAILABLE without any verification or editing from our side Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason