Barcelona, Spain.- Lionel Messi celebrated his 700th match with Barcelona with another exhibition. Two assists and a number from the Argentine who knocked out Borussia dortmund (3-1) and qualified the Blue Team to the champions league quarter-final as Group F.No leader was one more match for the Argentine. Not only for what his team was played for, in a spiral of doubts after an irregular start to the season, but for reaching a round figure with the club with which he debuted at the top on October 16, 2004.
In his 700th match, Messi shared an attack with Luis Suarez, his inseparable friend on and off the grass, and Ousmane Dembélé. A guest who left Antoine Griezmann on the bench.With the permission of the rosarino, the ‘mosquito’, with more desire than solvency in his actions, was the most active in the first 26 minutes. That was the time it lasted on the lawn. Another injury, Ousmane’s third so far seasonal, left the lawn barefoot and scathed.
Griezmann came in and Barca took three minutes to open the can, but the protagonists were Messi and Suarez, who in the 22nd minute already found a goal from the Uruguayan that var successfully annulled. In a team that goes through a game bump, they have become a wild card for Valverde. It doesn’t matter what positional play is. With a fast-ball recovery and a transition completed by one of the two stars has Barcelona enough to survive in the League and the Champions League.
Lionel Messi scoring his score against Borussia Dortmund/AFP
That’s how the first goal came. Messi took the ball after a rebound in the front of the area and assisted his friend. Goal service number 31 in the Champions League. He wasn’t the only one of the night for the Argentine. Four minutes took the Uruguayan-Argentine couple back in, although in the second both roles were exchanged. De Jong recovered the ball, connected with Suarez and he gave the second to ’10’, which remained someof the 700 he has scored in Barcelona (613) and the Argentine national team (86).
Borussia became the 78th victim of the 87 teams he has faced. Or what’s the same: Messi has seen goal against 89% of the opponents he has played against. In these 700 matches, the Rosarino has transformed 613 targets, with an average of 0.87 per match. With Leo in the field, Barca have been grateful for him for the last 15 years. His team has won 495 matches (70.71%), he has tied 128 (18.28%) and has lost 77 (11%).
Lionel Messi celebrating his score against Borussia Dortmund/AFP
Tonight Messi played his 140th match in the Champions League, with a record of 114 goals and 32 assists. The last of these was the third with which Barca sentenced the match (min.67). It was again in a rapid transition. Rosario’s crack drove the ball up to the spinal joint and a deep pass was invented to Griezmann, who did not fail. Victory 3-1 and mathematical classification for Barcelona, which still unconvinced but has Messi, who, since debuting at the age of 17 in a derby against Espanyol in Montjuc, has at his fingertips to overcome the records of longevity that still cherishs Xavi Hernández, who played 767 games with the elastic bluegrain.
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