Ibrahimovic scores twice as PSG beats Bastia 4-0

PARIS (AP) — Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Edinson Cavani scored spectacular goals as unbeaten Paris Saint-Germain beat Bastia 4-0 to provisionally move ahead of Monaco at the top of the French league on Saturday.

Ibrahimovic has some logic-defying goals during his illustrious career and added another to his collection.

Winger Lucas' cross from the right inadvertently struck Hervin Ongenda and the ball looped up and behind Ibrahimovic, who showed amazing flexibility to volley it over his shoulder with the back of his heel.

Moments later, he made it 2-0 after 15 minutes when Lucas' cross went in off his shoulder.

Cavani replaced Ibrahimovic at halftime and dribbled past three players down the left before slotting in from a tight angle. He added a late penalty for 4-0.

"Ibra doesn't surprise me, we know he's capable of scoring goals like that. We're very lucky to have a player like this, who is able to break the deadlock in any match," PSG coach Laurent Blanc said. "Cavani's goal was just as good, it wasn't easier to score. I'll be perfectly happy if he scores more like that."

Monaco, the only other unbeaten side, can retain top spot on goal difference if it wins by three goals at lowly Sochaux on Sunday. Lille remained in third place, four points behind PSG after winning 1-0 at Montpellier thanks to an early goal from defender Pape Souare.

Cavani has six league goals so far, one more than Ibrahimovic, although they rarely combine.

Bastia is strong at home but inconsistent away from home and had not won in its previous 25 visits to Paris.

It was soon obvious that bad run was never going to end when Ibrahimovic, who has a black belt in taekwondo, put PSG ahead in the 10th.

"He must have raised his leg about two meters," Bastia defender Francois-Joseph Modesto said. "That's why people pay a lot for players like him."

If only for one half, Cavani got a chance to play in his favored center forward role, rather than wide right when he's picked with Ibrahimovic in a 4-3-3 formation.

His first goal even had a grinning Ibrahimovic leaping up from the bench to applaud.

Picking up Jeremy Menez's pass from the left, he cut inside one defender, rolled the ball past another with great balance, forced goalkeeper Mickael Landreau to go to ground and then calmly curled the ball past another defender on the line from the narrowest of angles.

"They were two great goals scored by two great players," PSG midfielder Blaise Matuidi said. "Zlatan's goal is something else. But it's also typical of him. (Cavani's) goal is a different style. Edinson combines finesse with technical ability."

Landreau gave away a penalty in the 89th as he came to slide tackle left back Lucas Digne, missed the ball completely, and caught Digne as he tried again to kick the ball. Cavani stepped up to thump the spot-kick home as Landreau guessed the wrong way.

Bastia coach Frederic Hantz joked that things could have been even worse.

"When you see the names of the two scorers, you understand the difference between the two teams," he said. "We're disappointed with the score, although financial logic dictates that we should have lost 20-0. Conceding four isn't too bad, in the end."

In other matches, it was: Ajaccio 0, Nantes 1; Evian 1, Guingamp 2, and Rennes 2, Valenciennes 2.

Nantes jumped above Marseille and into fourth place with American midfielder Alejandro Bedoya scoring a late winner, while Guingamp moved up to eighth spot thanks to goals from Thibault Giresse and Ladislas Douniama.

Midfielder Foued Kadir, on loan from Marseille, scored twice for mid-table Rennes before striker Anthony Le Tallec and Marco Da Silva scored for Valenciennes, which moved off the bottom of the table.

In Sunday's other games, Saint-Etienne faces Lorient and struggling Lyon takes on Bordeaux.

In Friday's matches, it was Nice 1, Marseille 0 and Reims 1, Toulouse 2.