Morgan Schneiderlin has described his France colleague Blaise Matuidi as "the most important player" at Paris Saint-Germain after seeing the midfielder lead the national team to victory against Serbia on Monday.
Matuidi, 28, scored both France goals, including a marvellous volley, in a 2-1 friendly win in Bordeaux for the Euro 2016 hosts, but his midfield colleague Schneiderlin insists he was not surprised by the outstanding nature of the PSG man's display.
"Impressed by Matuidi? That's not the right word, because I know him and I know what he is capable of," Schneiderlin said after the game, in quotes published in sports daily L'Equipe.
Manchester United's Schneiderlin played against Matuidi during a preseason tour in the United States, when the PSG player scored in a 2-0 win for the French champions.
The rampaging midfielder has continued that scoring form into the opening weeks of the season, netting twice already in Ligue 1 before his double for Didier Deschamps' side against Serbia.
And Schneiderlin, who started alongside Matuidi in midfield in that game to win his 11th cap, reckons he has become even more important than the likes of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Thiago Silva and Edinson Cavani in Paris.
"He is now scoring goals, which completes his game," Schneiderlin added. "Having played against him in preseason, I can tell you that when you come up against a midfielder like that, it is very difficult for the opposition.
"He is such a good player. He is maybe not the grandest name in the PSG team but, in my view, he is the most important player in that team."