It's hard to think of something that hasn't already been said about Paris Saint-Germain goal machine Pedro Pauleta, but Rennes striker Alexander Frei managed just that this week.

"I don't know if the scouts have tomatoes in front of their eyes, but something isn't quite right," he commented enigmatically, suggesting the Portuguese ace should have been snapped up by a Manchester United or a Barcelona years ago.

And after Pauleta sunk Rennes with a superb double at the Parc des Princes on Saturday, it's easy to see why his Swiss rival would like to have him removed from the equation. Frei ended last season as the top scorer in Ligue 1, but with just five goals this time out he lies a full seven strikes behind the Eagle of the Azores and chances are that no one will catch him between now and May.

There's a righteous virtue to the former Bordeaux forward's current success, though, given that he has once again been one of the club's most outspoken voices. In fact, just last week he accused his teammates of failing to accept their responsibilities and being incapable of blaming themselves for their faults. "I spoke out to provoke the squad a little bit," he explained after the Rennes game. "I did it for the good of the team and because I thought it was necessary."

It seemed to work too, with PSG's attacking trio of Pauleta, Jérôme Rothen and Bonaventure Kalou managing to look like a coherent force for possibly the first time this season. His colleagues were instrumental in both his goals as well; Rothen shining first with a surging run into the area on 39 minutes and a clever, chipped pass into the middle that the Portugal international turned home with minimal fuss.

Kalou then set up the second just after the hour mark, releasing Pauleta on the right with two defenders barring his route to goal. Showing expert balance and control, the 32-year-old span inside Dos Santos Adailton and fired a low shot beyond Andreas Isaksson at the near post. He could have had a hat-trick too, had the talented Swedish goalkeeper not kept out a goalbound free-kick and a powerful header with impressive first-half saves.

With three points in the bag, the capital outfit moved back up to fourth in the standings and the verge of Ligue 1's Champions' League berths. For the supporters it was a welcome tonic, but not everyone is happy - starting with President Pierre Blayau. The feeling is growing that Coach Laurent Fournier finds his job on the line, and one complaint that keeps being aired is the team's total dependence on their Portuguese talisman.

Dismissing the Rennes result as no more than "obligatory", Blayau went on the attack and warned that replacing Fournier is, "a question we will all have to look at together." He is said to have the support of a number of players, but Pauleta is emphatically not one of them.

Loyal to a fault, he waited to see whether 'Lolo' would be given the job on a permanent basis before pledging his future to PSG in the summer, and his blistering comments last week were a riposte to those squad members who have sought to deflect criticism of their performances onto the Coach. Likewise, he must have thought that his goalscoring exploits – he numbers four in his last three games – were the best way to protect the man in the dugout.

Ironically, however, it seems he simply makes the problem worse every time he hits the back of the net. It may not make a whole lot of sense, but not many things at PSG ever do.