Chelsea have reportedly held talks with Ligue 1 table-toppers Paris Saint-Germain regarding the availability of Uruguayan striker Edinson Cavani. According to reports in Goal.com, Claude Makelele had discussions about bringing the striker to London whilst on his trip to the French capital. Makelele, who is the technical mentor to Chelsea’s young players, travelled to Paris primarily for another deal – involving 17-year-old wonder-kid Kays Ruiz-Atil.
Edinson Cavani has been a long-time servant of PSG, but his time seems over at the club. With Argentine striker Mauro Icardi settling in well at the club and scoring goals for fun, Cavani’s opportunities have been few and far between. Hence, the striker is seeking a move away from the club, so as to keep him in contention for a place in his country’s team for Copa America this year.
As of now, Atletico Madrid is the only side who have formally made contact with the French giants about Cavani. Though Chelsea have held talks, a formal bid is yet to be launched for the player whose contract runs out in the summer. But he has handed in a transfer request and would want to force a move out of France in this month itself. The deal might be more complicated than it looks, as PSG manager Thomas Tuchel has made his intentions of keeping the striker for the rest of the season very clear.
Edinson Cavani: Good option for Chelsea?
Frank Lampard’s primary target in the transfer window is to add to his attacking options. Chelsea’s first-choice striker Tammy Abraham has been in good form, but he is still very young. As with all the other youngsters, consistency is an issue with him. Backup option Michy Batshuayi is having a tough time, whereas Olivier Giroud is nearing a move to Inter Milan.
Hence, Chelsea would want to bring in an experienced striker, and Cavani has experience in plenty. He started his professional career at Danubio but made the news during his stint with Italian side Palermo which led to him being signed by Napoli. Cavani moved to PSG in 2013 after three seasons at Naples. Since then, he has been a faithful servant of the Ligue 1 club scoring a whopping 198 goals in 292 matches.
One might say that at 32 years of age, Edinson Cavani is way past his prime. However, stats prove otherwise as the striker has done a good job whenever he was called up to do so. Last season, Cavani scored 23 goals in just 33 appearances. Even in this season, Cavani has got 5 goals in 12 games. With Tammy Abraham injuring himself in the game against Arsenal, Cavani might well be the man Lampard is looking for and is someone who should be pursued by the Chelsea board with vigour.
