Birthday boy Cavani revels in 'special' victory

Edinson Cavani revelled in Paris Saint-Germain marking his 30th birthday with a "special" 4-0 thumping of Barcelona on Tuesday.

PSG took a huge step towards the Champions League quarter-finals with an emphatic victory in the first leg of their last-16 tie.

Cavani rounded off the scoring after a double from Angel Di Maria – also celebrating his birthday – sandwiched a goal from Julian Draxler.

The Uruguay international enjoyed the occasion, but was quick to point out that PSG cannot lose focus on domestic matters.

"For four seasons I have been in Paris and we have played some great matches, but this victory has a rather special flavour because of the meaning of this day for me," Cavani told beIN Sports.

"We are all very happy. We have done a great job but tomorrow we will have to recover.

"For now, we are not thinking about the second leg. We must focus on the league and the domestic cups, which are also very important.

"It will be necessary to prepare for the match in Barcelona because football is beautiful because you never know what can happen before a game."

Centre-back Marquinhos praised PSG's defensive performance but still anticipates a tough match in the second leg in Barcelona on March 8.

"We are a young but solid team," said Marquinhos. "We knew how to squeeze them, how to be well positioned with the low block, and we knew how to take advantage of our opportunities.

"Everyone is super happy. We must keep our feet on the ground, work well and prepare because we know that Barca are a formidable team at Camp Nou. We will have to suffer, defend and attack together."