Montpellier vs Paris Saint Germain - Neymar absent as PSG look to continue winning start

Posted Saturday, September 23, 2017 by PA

Neymar will miss Paris St Germain's trip to Montpellier, reportedly due to a minor foot injury, as the capital club bid to extend their 100 per cent start to the season on Saturday.

The Brazilian, a world-record signing from Barcelona this summer, has been in the headlines this week following an apparent disagreement with Edinson Cavani over who would take a penalty in last week's 2-0 victory over Lyon.

And despite training on Thursday, Neymar was left out of the 18-strong squad named on Friday evening for the clash at the Stade de la Mosson.

He is being rested in an effort to allow him to recover for next week's mouthwatering Champions League clash with Bayern Munich, according to L'Equipe.

PSG boss Unai Emery was at pains to stress there is harmony in the dressing room as he attempted to play down reports of a bust-up between two of his star players.

He told a press conference: "The atmosphere is great in the dressing room. It's true that there are characters and cultures. We can pay attention to that, but the atmosphere is good.

"The players are competitors who want the best for the team and, after that, for themselves."

However, Emery gave an equivocal answer as to who will take penalties in future, with Cavani seeing his spot-kick saved against Lyon following his confrontation with Neymar.

Emery added: "Numerous players are capable of taking responsibility for them. Here, the two penalty-takers are Cavani and Neymar.

"Both players are capable of taking them. Who is number one? The important thing is to put it in the back of the net."

PSG, who could welcome back Angel di Maria from injury and Marco Verratti from suspension, have swept all before them this season and six wins from six have given them a three-point lead in Ligue 1.

But Emery is not underestimating a Montpellier side who beat them handily in the fixture last season.

He said: "We want to continue on this winning run. It will be a tough match. Last season, we lost 3-0 there. They are very competitive. They play hard, with a lot of discipline, and they can cause us a lot of problems."

Montpellier go into the game 11 points behind their opponents, but on the back of a 1-0 win at Troyes, which ended a run of one point from their previous four games.