Edinson Cavani turns down €1m offer to give Neymar PSG penalty duties
French club reportedly offered Uruguayan the lump sum to end spot-kick rift
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
Edinson Cavani has reportedly turned down a €1million (£879,440) offer from Paris Saint-Germain to allow Neymar to take penalties for the club.
PSG’s star duo had argued on the pitch over who would take a penalty against Lyon in the Ligue 1 clash on 17 September. Various media reported that the players then clashed in the changing room after Cavani missed from 12 yards.
Last week the Spanish newspaper Sport reported that Neymar had demanded his team-mate be sold, but the rift was played down on Friday after the Daily Mail said that Neymar had apologised to the PSG squad for the antics.
Article continues belowThe Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
This morning the spot-kick rift has again blown up with the Mail reporting that the club had offered Cavani the cash incentive to hand over penalty duties to Neymar, who signed for PSG in a world-record deal in the summer.
The Mail, via the Spanish paper El Pais, claims that Cavani was offered the €1m ‘sweetener’ by PSG chief Nasser Al-Khelaifi. It’s the same amount that Cavani would earn as a bonus for finishing the season as the club’s top goalscorer.
According to El Pais, and as the club’s designated penalty taker, Cavani is refusing to change his stance and is not interested in the cash bonus.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com