Edinson Cavani has played down his dispute with Paris Saint-Germain teammate Neymar and said that everything was blown out of proportion.
Cavani and Neymar argued about which of the two should be responsible for taking a free kick and later a penalty for PSG during a 2-0 victory over Lyon on Sept. 17. Cavani had had the responsibility last season at PSG before Neymar’s arrival this summer in a world-record €222 million move from Barcelona.
Both players looked to have put their differences behind them as they celebrated each other’s goals in Saturday’s 6-2 home win over Bordeaux. Cavani and Neymar are now in South America preparing for World Cup qualifying games with Uruguay and Brazil respectively.
Asked about his dispute with Neymar, Cavani told a news conference: “These are things to do with football. Sometimes things are blown out of proportion. Everyone is aware of that. These are things that are resolved within a changing room.
“Everything has a solution and everything is calm now. The important thing is that we all fight for the same aim, whether it’s with the national team or for the club.”
Cavani’s attention is now on Uruguay, who head into Thursday’s game at Venezuela – second in the South American qualifying group, 10 points adrift of leaders Brazil and one point clear of third-placed Colombia. Uruguay, hoping to reach their 13th World Cup, hosts Bolivia in their final qualifier on October 10.
“We are aware that we are close [to qualifying], just one step away from achieving something great for our country,” Cavani said. “We have to work hard in order to achieve it in our next game. There is no better motivation going into a game than knowing you can qualify for a World Cup.”
Uruguay has won eight and lost five of their 16 qualifiers and are three points clear of Peru, who hold the last direct qualifying spot.
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