Lionel Messi has set the bar so high for himself that when he does not score for a few games it prompts an outburst of speculation and head-scratching about what might be ailing the Argentine World Player of the Year.
Lionel Messi's knack for finding the net continued for an 18th consecutive league match as Barcelona restored their 13-point lead in La Liga.
Lionel Messi scored four goals to take his La Liga tally to 50 this season as Barcelona hammered Espanyol 4-0 on Saturday in an emotional last game at the Nou Camp for outgoing coach Pep Guardiola.
Luis Suarez grabbed a hat-trick and Lionel Messi bagged two goals as Barcelona began their quest for a third straight La Liga title with a 6-2 rout of Real Betis on Saturday. Arda Turan, whose two goals against Sevilla helped Barca lift the Spanish Super Cup on Wednesday, gave them an early lead at the Nou Camp before Ruben Castro equalised in the 21st minute. Barca went back in front thanks to a trademark 37th-minute goal from Messi before Suarez, La Liga's top scorer last season, made it 3-1 before halftime.
The Argentine failed to find the net for Barcelona in either leg of the Champions League semi-final, meaning he has now been unable to score against Chelsea in eight outings, by far his worst record against any club.
Messi has been linked with a move away from the Camp Nou at the end of the season after he caused a stir by criticising the club's sporting director Eric Abidal
Barcelona must considerably reduce their wage bill in order to keep Lionel Messi, La Liga chief Javier Tebas said on Thursday, adding that the club would not be shown any leniency when it comes to obeying the league's strict financial control rules.
Lionel Messi led Barcelona almost effortlessly past AC Milan into the Champions League semi-finals on Tuesday with a thrilling 3-1 victory at the Nou Camp as the Argentine and his team mates got into the record books along the way.
Five-time world player of the year Lionel Messi of Argentina, Chile's Alexis Sanchez and Brazilian Dani Alves were among the big names in the final rosters announced on Monday for next month's Copa America Centenario.
Barcelona's faith in their ability to groom the little lad from Rosario for their first team and transform him into the world's best player has paid off handsomely.
Lionel Messi at his breathtaking best tore Bayer Leverkusen apart with a record five-goal Champions League haul on Wednesday as Barcelona swept into the quarter-finals 7-1 on the night and 10-2 on aggregate.
Such is the focus on Lionel Messi in the countdown to the World Cup that even the slightest problem in training gets full blown local media coverage as with a scrape on Friday. The world's top player, practising with Diego Maradona's Argentina for the finals in South Africa that kick off on June 11, fell and suffered a minor scrape on his right leg at the team's training base outside Buenos Aires.
Lionel Messi dreams of retiring at Barcelona, the club who trained him as a teenager and where he began his professional career in 2004, the Argentine World Player of the Year said on Monday.
Argentina got their World Cup qualifying campaign off to the perfect start on Thursday when Lionel Messi's early penalty gave them a 1-0 win over Ecuador in a lacklustre match in Buenos Aires.
As the mercurial Messi rings in his 28th birthday, Rediff.com brings you all the exciting moments from the ace footballer's life.
Lionel Messi produced a vintage second-half performance to help Barcelona to a 4-1 win over local rivals Espanyol on Sunday which saw the champions cut the gap on La Liga leaders Real Madrid to three points.
Diego Maradona's Argentina were impressive 2-0 winners in France on Wednesday as two of world football's heavyweights squared up for a friendly in Marseille. On a hectic day of friendly internationals and a smattering of World Cup qualifiers, David Beckham equalled 1966 World Cup winning captain Bobby Moore's record of 108 caps for an outfield player when he came on for the second half of England's 2-0 friendly defeat in Spain.
Lionel Messi scored two wonder goals as European champions Barcelona thrashed Brazil's Santos 4-0 to win their second Club World Cup in two years on Sunday.
Lionel Messi will have another chance to match or surpass Telmo Zarra's six-decade-old La Liga scoring record of 251 goals when Barcelona host promoted Eibar on Saturday.
Lionel Messi's picture was on the front pages rather than the sports sections of the Spanish media on Thursday, after the World Player of the Year and his father were accused of tax fraud.
Two goals from Lionel Messi and a poacher's strike from Bojan Krkic gave Barcelona a 3-0 win over Athletic Bilbao in their Spanish Super Cup second leg on Sunday for a 5-1 aggregate victory.
Lionel Messi does not need a Copa America win to feel like the king of the world. He captured that crown a long ago, says Dhruv Munjal.
Lionel Messi returned from international suspension to score the winner in Argentina's 1-0 victory over Brazil in Saudi Arabia on Friday.
Images from the Champions League second-leg match played on Wednesday.
Lionel Messi's ankle injury has ruled him out of Barcelona's league derby with Espanyol on Saturday, and makes him doubtful for their opening game of the Club World Cup, the European champions said on Thursday. The Argentina international twisted his right ankle in Barca's 2-1 Champions League victory away to Dynamo Kiev on Wednesday.
Lionel Messi scored twice as Barcelona crushed Getafe 5-2 on Thursday to stay in the hunt for the La Liga title.
Lionel Messi's goals have fired Argentina into the World Cup last 16 but they will look for a better all-round performance when they meet Switzerland.
Argentine prodigy Lionel Messi emulated Diego Maradona once again on Saturday when he scored a replica of the Argentine great's famous "hand of god" goal with a desperate equaliser against city rivals Espanyol on Saturday.
The referee said in his match report he showed the card because Messi "delayed his return to his half of the pitch after the goal was scored with the intention of wasting time".
Argentina overcame its Copa America penalty shootout demons
Argentina marked the revival of the Cup of Champions in style as an inspired Lionel Messi helped them outclass Italy 3-0 in a heavyweight clash billed as the 'Finalissima' at a raucous Wembley Stadium in London on Wednesday.
The 33-year-old Messi, who signed his last contract in 2017, has become more outspoken against the club's hierarchy in the last year and radio station Cadena Ser said last Thursday he is unhappy with how Barca is being run and wants to leave in 2021.
Barcelona's serial hat-trick scorer Lionel Messi will be looking to take up where he last left off as Argentina captain when he leads his country against Ecuador in a 2014 World Cup qualifier on Saturday.
Lionel Messi scored in his 12th consecutive La Liga game to help leaders Barcelona earn a 1-1 draw at Valencia, allowing second-placed Atletico Madrid to close to within nine points after a 1-0 win over Real Betis on Sunday.
The stadium erupted in cheers once more with Fernandez's late strike which sealed Argentina's first win in the tournament and rekindled Messi's hopes of a first-ever World Cup title.
Barcelona forward Lionel Messi is hoping for an injury free 2014 as his recovery from a thigh injury nears completion, the World Player of the Year said on Monday.
Barcelona pulled six points clear of Atletico Madrid at the top of La Liga when Lionel Messi netted his seventh double of the campaign and set up Alex Song to open his account for the club in a 3-1 success at home to Real Zaragoza on Saturday.
That was also Messi's 500th goal for Barcelona.
Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi produced moments of magic to earn victories for Real Madrid and Barcelona which kept Real 10 points clear at the top of La Liga on Sunday.
Messi was Argentina's key man in their 1-0 win.
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