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Blanc: Lucas benefiting from first-team run

The 21-year-old attacking midfielder made the switch to the Parc des Princes in a reported €45 million deal from Sao Paulo in January 2013 after rising to prominence in his native Brazil.

Lucas' form for the Parisians' has been somewhat indifferent in his time at the club, but the Brazil international has shown glimpses of his undoubted talent.

That included a superb piece of skill in last weekend's 2-0 victory over Marseille, where Lucas picked up the ball in his own half and held off several challenges before seeing his dinked effort cleared before crossing the goal-line.

"Lucas is scoring a lot of points at the moment," he said ahead of PSG's Ligue 1 clash with Bastia on Saturday. "He is getting better because he is playing a lot, so physically he is getting stronger.

"He wasn't far off scoring an incredible goal against Marseille in Le Classique. It was a world class passage of play and if he'd scored, it would have been seen around the world."

He added: "There's a bit of fatigue there, especially with Thiago Silva who had a long trip to South Africa. Thiago Motta felt a bit of pain in his knee playing for Italy, but he was already feeling better when he returned on Thursday. He should be available."