Why Paris Saint-Germain Should Not Consider Selling Edinson Cavani This Summer

Once again we are faced with a summer of stories linking Edinson Cavani to a move away from Paris Saint-Germain. If the French club are serious about building their status up to join Europe's best, it is paramount that they hold off any advances and do everything they can to keep the Uruguayan striker at the club for another season.

After making the €60 million move from Napoli in Serie A to the Ligue 1 champions in the summer of 2013, it was a mixed season for the striker. He went from scoring 29 goals in Italy to 16 in Ligue 1, but with a new league, country and system to adapt to, it was always going to be tough to flourish instantly.

Just like a successful band tries to follow their debut album, Cavani has endured a difficult second season. PSG have struggled as a club to find their best football and in turn Cavani has struggled to match the form of the previous campaign.

Lucas Moura has emerged as an integral part of the PSG attack, so Cavani has had to move to starting from the right to a place on the left-flank. This has not changed how the play develops; it has simply forced the striker to adapt to making runs from left to right, instead of cutting in from the right-wing.

Last season, so much of PSG's excellent play came from Zlatan Ibrahimovic creating centrally, linking up with Blaise Matuidi, Ezequiel Lavezzi and Maxwell down the left. Then, Cavani would be the recipient downfield, making moves inside the penalty area. However, that hasn't quite developed the same way this year.

These changes have taken their toll. There was also the injury to Ibrahimovic that allowed Cavani to play through the middle. With his confidence already suffering due to a lack of goals, the pressure was on him to deliver and become the figurehead of the attack. However, it didn't work as everyone would have hoped. During the Week 9 clash with Monaco in the Parc des Princes, you could tell he was void of belief in his own ability.

Matt Dunham/Associated Press

However, the contrast to this has been his performances in the UEFA Champions League. During the group stage—without Ibrahimovic for most of it—the centre-forward excelled with more space and scored six goals in eight games. It would have been very fitting if his chance against Chelsea hadn't come off the inside of the post and gone wide. His season has been cursed with unfortunate occurrences like the one at Stamford Bridge.

The big decision facing PSG manager Laurent Blanc is not just whether or not he should consider selling Cavani. It is a matter of who Blanc would bring in to replace him. After such a huge outlay was given to the striker, the club would need to spend a similar amount to find a replacement that is good enough to step into the PSG attack and make it any better than it currently is.

In the current European climate, there is not a huge abundance of talented No. 9's around that PSG could realistically pursue.

Jacques Brinon/Associated Press

With the future of Ibrahimovic uncertain going into next season, it would make more sense for PSG to stick with the striker they already have and look to get the best out of him—rather than start again and let someone else sit in Zlatan's shadow for at least another 12 months.

There are systems available to Blanc that would help Cavani flourish further, and he could use the summer to switch to something that resembles 4-3-1-2 rather than a flat 4-3-3. This would take Cavani's defensive responsibilities away and let him concentrate on leading the line.

Cavani is good enough to become PSG’s main striking option in the next 12 months. The 28-year-old just needs to feel loved and that his team has confidence in his ability. If they can rediscover that love and confidence in the summer, then El Matador could easily rediscover the form that made him one of football’s elite strikers, and that makes more sense than taking a huge risk looking for a replacement.