PSG defeat Strasbourg in Ligue 1

Paris Saint-Germain bounced back from its Champions League loss this week to defeat Strasbourg 5-2 here in the 26th round of the French football league.

Jean-Eudes Aholou opened the scoring for Strasbourg at Parc des Princes Stadium with a goal in the sixth minute, but PSG midfielder Julian Draxler netted the equaliser five minutes later on Saturday, reports Efe news.

PSG superstar Neymar Jr. gave the home side a 2-1 lead in the 21st minute, while teammate Angel Di Maria added the third goal just a minute later.

Strasbourg forward Stephane Bahoken narrowed the gap with the second goal for his side in the 67th minute, but PSG forward Edinson Cavani scored the fourth goal six minutes later.

With 11 minutes to go before second-half injury time, Cavani struck again with a fifth goal for PSG.

With the win, the Paris club now has 68 points, 12 more than second-placed Monaco with a dozen games remaining in the Ligue 1 season.

The win comes in a rough week for PSG, which lost 3-1 to Real Madrid on Wednesday at the Santiago Bernabeu in the first leg of their Champions League round-of-16 clash. The second leg will be played at Parc des Princes on March 6.

Strasbourg is now in 14th place in Ligue 1 with 30 points, far out of contention for a spot in Europe but still five points clear of the league's relegation zone.

--IANS

sam/ksk