Lucas Moura Shows Big-Game Appetite as PSG See off Marseille in Le Classique

Paris Saint-Germain moved to within a single point of Ligue 1 leaders Olympique de Marseille with a 2-0 win over Marcelo Bielsa’s men at the Parc des Princes on Sunday. Lucas Moura and Edinson Cavani’s goals were enough for Les Parisiens in the end, but referee Clement Turpin’s decision to dismiss OM’s Giannelli Imbula with a harsh straight red card at 1-0 will heap more scrutiny upon France’s much-maligned referees.

The decision to send the French midfielder off, although a key moment in the match, was not the decisive factor. At that point, with 12 minutes left in the capital, the damage had already been done by PSG’s in-form Brazilian international, Lucas.

With seven minutes to go until half-time, the Selecao star capitalised on some hesitant defending from Marseille’s Benjamin Mendy to deflect the Frenchman’s attempted clearance into the net after a dangerous Ezequiel Lavezzi cross.

It might not have been a spectacular finish, but it was a well-deserved sixth goal of the season for the South American Man of the Match and yet another sign that Le Championnat is starting to see the best of the 22-year-old after a lengthy wait. Lucas now has five goals in his last seven league matches and has, along with Edinson Cavani, been the capital club’s main source of goals in the absence of star man Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

Francois Mori/Associated Press

The Swede may well be back for good now after a 25-minute cameo appearance as a substitute in the 2-0 win, but coach Laurent Blanc will be hoping that the PSG No. 7 can maintain his current decisive form. Le President regularly lamented the fact that Moura did not score more often last season but has been made to eat his words with the jet-heeled Brazilian’s most prolific season in Paris to date.

After the final whistle, the immensely popular Parisien told PSG.fr (in French) that he was happy to have won the game and also stressed how important it is that the defending champions continue their winning streak. He also added that he was happy to score and continues to grow in confidence.

Lucas has six goals at present and has deservedly managed to play his way back into the Selecao setup thanks to an excellent string of recent performances after a relatively slow start to the campaign. The talented and versatile attacking threat has been one of the French champions’ main weapons, along with Cavani and Javier Pastore, justifying the exorbitant fee paid to land him back in 2012.

While he should not rest on his laurels, it has been an extremely positive spell for Moura in the absence of Ibrahimovic. Like Pastore, the South American has been empowered by the lack of the dominant Swede, as it has given him greater freedom to express himself.

Last season, Lucas was more of a provider, and he laid on 10 goals in 36 Ligue 1 appearances. This term the Brazilian is yet to record a single decisive pass in Le Championnat and only has one to his name in the UEFA Champions League.

Ibrahimovic’s injury forced Moura to step up and contribute in his absence, and the phenomenally gifted wide man has added that string to his bow. Not only is he finding ways to score more often than before, but he is thinking about going for goal more regularly and not looking for the pass.

Francois Mori/Associated Press

As his Marseille performance demonstrated, whether it was his goal, his jaw-dropping skill—summed up with a sensational shoulder drop to completely fool OM’s Romain Alessandrini—or his searing pace opening up Bielsa’s team defensively, Lucas is rapidly starting to deliver on his immense promise.

He also has a taste for the big games, having scored in key fixtures against the likes of Girondins de Bordeaux and AS Monaco, while also finding the net against Stade Malherbe Caen and SC Bastia.

"

VINE - GOL DE LUCAS MOURA! https://t.co/ivjQ1dH5o2

— Seleção Brasileira (@BrazilStats) November 9, 2014"

Moura is held in high esteem by the PSG fans, having been voted the capital club’s Player of the Month for both September and October, and is now finally indispensable to coach Blanc and back in the Brazil picture thanks to new coach Dunga. If his current form continues, it is difficult to see that changing.

Now the big question for Blanc is how he accommodates his in-form talents like Lucas, Cavani and Pastore with the returning Ibrahimovic. Perhaps more interestingly, how will the Swede’s return impact Moura's newfound clinical edge in front of goal?