Zlatan Ibrahimovic bags double as PSG edge Nantes

PARIS -- Zlatan Ibrahimovic scored twice as a poor Paris Saint-Germain rallied to beat Nantes 2-1 and moved provisionally to the top of the French league on Saturday.

Four days before its trip to Barcelona in the Champions League, PSG struggled to create opportunities against an organized Nantes, and relied on Ibrahimovic's class to come out on top.

Laurent Blanc's side improved after the interval but Nantes will feel a sense of injustice over a disallowed goal that would have put them into a 2-0 lead, and a refereeing decision that saw PSG midfielder Marco Verratti avoid a direct sending-off in the first half.

Midfielder Alejandro Bedoya put Nantes in front in the eighth minute with a superb 25-meter (yard) strike but the visitors were punished on a counterattack that Ibrahimovic concluded from close range in the 34th.

Ibrahimovic scored his eighth league goal this season with a free kick in the top corner in the 48th.

PSG moved two points clear of Marseille, which can reclaim the top spot by beating Metz on Sunday.

PSG got off to a poor start and was quickly made to pay for its inadequacies as Bedoya silenced the home fans with his stunning shot into the top left corner.

With regular starters Maxwell, Gregory van der Wiel, David Luiz, Blaise Matuidi and Edinson Cavani on the bench, PSG looked powerless in the early stages.

Verratti was lucky to escape with a yellow card following his high tackle to stop Nantes midfielder Georges-Kevin Nkoudou's run in the 11th. His teammate Papy Mison Djilobodi then thought he doubled Nantes' lead with a volley at the far post from a free kick, but his goal was disallowed for offside.

''When there is a serious foul, it has to be a red card, otherwise the rules need to be clarified,'' Nantes president Waldemar Kita said. ''And I can't understand why the goal was disallowed, there is no offside.''

PSG remained dangerous on the break, and leveled at the end of a swift move ignited by Serge Aurier and concluded by Ibrahimovic, who slotted home with a cool finish from Lucas' cross despite a challenge from bulky center-back Augusto Vizcarrondo.

PSG tried to build on the momentum with strong pressure yet could not add another one before the interval. But Ibrahimovic, who was rested on Wednesday for the 1-1 draw at Lille, needed just three minutes after coming back from the dressing room to put the French champions ahead. His powerful free kick from the same spot where Bedoya fired the opener took the same route straight into the top corner.

''He (Ibrahimovic) is important, he makes the difference,'' PSG defender Marquinhos said.

PSG and Barcelona have qualified for the knockout phase of the Champions League and are vying for supremacy in Group F, with PSG needing only a draw in Catalonia to secure top spot.

Later Saturday, Saint-Etienne hosted Bastia looking for a victory that would propel it into the top three.