Chelsea linked with future free agent Edinson Cavani

Despite being one of the most prolific forwards of the last decade — time sure flies fast! — Edinson Cavani lack of minutes this season makes it evident that he doesn’t feature in PSG head coach Thomas Tuchel’s future plans.

And while there are strong rumors that Cavani has signed a pre-contract with Atlético Madrid for a free transfer in the summer, he hasn’t officially signed it yet. Therefore, it comes as no surprise that Chelsea, along with Manchester United, are taking a stock of the situation and have apparently even made formal enquiries to gauge the likelihood of signing the player.

Widely regarded as one of the finest and most-complete strikers of the modern era, Cavani, often linked with Chelsea during that time, has scored 196 goals and provided 40 assists in 290 appearances for PSG. After Zlatan Ibrahimović’s departure from Paris, he briefly took on the mantle of star talisman before getting once again overshadowed, this time by the record-setting arrivals of Neymar and Kylian Mbappe.

Cavani’s movement as a No. 9 are alone exemplary and should serve as a template for coaching young strikers all over the world. Add in his work rate and his willingness to do whatever it takes wherever on the pitch, and we’re truly talking a rare breed of player, even if he is approaching 33 years of age. His experience, leadership qualities and footballing skills would make him the perfect compliment to younger strikers like Chelsea’s Tammy Abraham and United’s Marcus Rashford, though it’s yet to be seen if Cavani will accept such a reduced role.

L’Equipe’s report also talks about the possibility of the striker’s departure from PSG in January already, so if we’re serious about getting a proven world-class senior player to help out young Tammy — and acquire a more than ready-made replacement for Olivier Giroud — we need to get to work.