The Battle for Supremacy
squabble between Cavani and Neymar, who for the second time in his stint in Paris, attempted to take a penalty. He was unsuccessful again, as Cavani took charge his effort was saved by Anthony Lopes.
There was also an incident where Cavani wanted to take a free-kick and Dani Alves nabbed the ball off him, and gave it to Neymar.
Though Manager Unai Emery has told them to sort out the issue, it doesn't seem like the situation has improved. Alarmingly for everyone associated with PSG, there are reports that in the dressing room after the match, things were close to getting physical between the South American pair.
An altercation between the two took place, with Cavani unhappy with the way Neymar conducted himself. Captain Thiago Silva was said to have intervened to defuse the tension.
While both players along with Kylian Mbappe, have developed a strong understanding and formed a fearsome attacking trio that has scored 16 goals so far this term, the dispute is a major cause for concern and doesn't exactly bode well for team spirit.
In a classic case of modern football, it soon came to light that Neymar has unfollowed Cavani on Instagram as a result of the disagreement, while after the game, the former Napoli man made a decision to rush out of the Parc des Princes and avoid what would have been intense questions from journalists in the mixed zone about the incident.
The Brazil superstar now wants to win the Ballon d'Or after leaving Barcelona. When Neymar joined Barcelona in 2013, Johan Cruyff could see trouble ahead. “I wouldn't put two captains on the same boat,” he said referring to the Brazilian joining the same team as Lionel Messi. “You have to learn from the past on this one.”
For once, the great man was wrong. Neymar and Messi got on well that they both paid gushing tributes to each other when they parted company this summer.
However, it's unlikely to be that way when Cavani inevitably leaves Paris Saint-Germain – Neymar has already stopped following him on Twitter and he passed to him just twice in the weekend game against Lyon. Cavani didn't pass to Neymar at all, and by all accounts went for him in the dressing room after the game.
There are two differences between PSG in 2017 and Barcelona in 2013: Cavani is not Messi, and the Neymar of four years ago is not the Neymar of now.
Messi can be as self-centred as the next superstar but it's also true that by genius standards, he has a remarkably underdeveloped ego, and Neymar benefited from that.
At the end of the 2014-15 season, Barcelona were thrashing Cordoba 6-0 and Messi, on a hat-trick, let Neymar take a penalty because the Brazilian hadn't scored yet. It was typical of his attitude during their four seasons playing together.
Whenever they played weak opposition, Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez would make an effort to ensure all three get on the scoresheet. In closer, more difficult games when Messi felt that his aim was off and that Neymar was turning everything he touched into gold, then he would step aside and let the Brazilian be the protagonist.
In last season's comeback against PSG at the Nou Camp it wouldn't have entered Messi's head to push Neymar to one side for that late free-kick and even later penalty.
Neymar was also very keen to show that he had not come to rip Messi's crown off his head even though succession was his long-term idea.
On the day of his presentation, he said, “I've never worried about being the best in the world. The best is already here and he's Messi, who