Paris Saint-Germain 6 Caen 0: No European hangover as champions run riot

Paris Saint-Germain showed no sign of a Champions League hangover as Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored twice in a 6-0 demolition of Caen on Saturday.

The Ligue 1 champions once again failed to replicate their domestic dominance on the European scene as a 1-0 defeat at Manchester City on Wednesday saw them eliminated at the quarter-final stage for the fourth season running.

But PSG undoubtedly remain the powerhouse of French football and Laurent Blanc – whose failure in Europe has led to question marks over his future – witnessed his side at their irrepressible best at the Parc des Princes.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic was the beneficiary of an Alaeddine Yahia mistake for his 31st league goal of the campaign, surpassing his best return in a season, and the Sweden striker set up Blaise Matuidi to make
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it 2-0 shortly before half-time.

Three goals in the space of seven minutes early in the second half then killed any hope of a Caen comeback as PSG ran riot.

Cavani tapped in the third, Angel di Maria scored the pick of the goals with an audacious chip and Ibrahimovic grabbed a second thanks to a well-controlled volley before Maxwell completed the rout.

PSG opened the scoring in the 12th minute following a gift from Caen.

Yahia got his feet tangled after making an interception and Di Maria teed up Ibrahimovic, whose 25-yard effort went straight under Remy Vercoutre.

Caen responded well and Ronny Rodelin side-footed wide after meeting Vincent Bessat’s deep cross from the left.

PSG missed a great chance to double the lead when Lucas Moura headed straight at the goalkeeper from Matuidi’s clever dinked cross and shortly after Ibrahimovic picked out the run of Cavani, whose delicate chip just cleared the crossbar.

Vercoutre then made a sharp save from Matuidi’s volley, before Cavani slashed an effort wide when one-on-one.

Caen almost made PSG pay twice. First Benjamin Stambouli cleared Michael Nkololo’s header off the line before Salvatore Sirigu made a fine one-handed stop from Saidi Ntibazonkiza.

It was 2-0 before the break, though. Ibrahimovic held the ball up in the area and squared to Matuidi, who rifled his shot past Vercoutre.

And the floodgates opened after the interval. Cavani started the blitz, prodding into an unguarded goal after great work by Ibrahimovic and the brilliant Matuidi.

Di Maria then displayed his class by bursting through the middle and delicately chipping over Vercoutre.

It soon became five when Layvin Kurzawa’s first-time cross from the left was wonderfully guided home by Ibrahimovic at the back post. 

There was no mercy for Caen and Cavani picked up the ball on the left before laying on for Maxwell in the area and the full-back’s effort was too strong for Vercoutre, while Gregory van der Wiel also struck the post late on.