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PSG owner rules out departures of Ibra, Pastore, Cavani

Xinhua, April 29, 2015 Adjust font size:

Paris Saint-Germain president Nasser Al-Khelaifi told Tuesday's Le Parisien that stars Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Edinson Cavani and Javier Pastore, as well as coach Laurent Blanc, will not be leaving in the summer.

Courting controversy recently by criticizing the standard of refereeing in Ligue 1, Swedish striker Ibra received a three-match ban while rumors of him leaving for Major Soccer League or recruited by Manchester United, Liverpool and Chelsea were all reported.

Al-Khelaifi, however, denied the prospect of the Swede moving away from the Parc de Princes, saying that the question doesn't even have to be asked.

"The matter is not even up for debate," said the Qatari. "He will be staying for us for next season, and that is for sure. And that goes for Javier Pastore too."

With a number of Premier League sides are reported to be interested in signing Uruguayan striker Cavani, Al-Khelaifi said the 28-year-old was the "future of the club" and "he will be at PSG next season".

He also said the criticism of Blanc was "unfair" though PSG were knocked out of the Champions League by Barcelona at the quarterfinal stage, losing 5-1 on aggregate last week.

The defending champions of Ligue 1 are on course for a historic domestic treble after taking the title of French League Cup, being engaged with Ligue 2 side Auxerre in the French Cup final on May, and leading the Ligue 1 rankings after beating Metz 3-1 on Tuesday. Endi