Teenager Pedro “Pedri” González canceled out Iñaki William’s opener for Bilbao before Messi added two goals to secure an away win for Barcelona that lifted it into third place.
Lionel Messi set up Frenkie de Jong for a goal to help earn a 1-0 win at Huesca on Sunday in the Argentine great’s 750th overall appearance for Barcelona and his 500th in the Spanish league.
As of Jan. 1, Messi could negotiate with other clubs as his contract with Barcelona is set to expire in June.
Messi has been linked with a move to Manchester City, where he would be reunited with Guardiola, since he expressed a desire to leave Barcelona in the summer.
Lionel Messi surpassed Pele's all-time scoring record for a single club, as he netted his 644th goal for Barcelona in the club's 3-0 win over Real Valladolid.
The legendary Brazilian footballer says he admires Messi very much after the Argentine surpasses Pele's higest goalscorer record for a single club.
Messi's 643rd career goal for Barcelona since his 2004 debut matched Pelé’s tally for Santos accumulated from 1957-74. Messi is Barcelona’s and the Spanish league’s all-time leading scorer.
The esteemed line-up also includes Brazil's three-time World Cup winner Pele and legendary Argentinian Diego Maradona, who died last month of a heart-attack.
Messi fired a left-footed shot off the far post and into the net to get Barcelona’s breakthrough in the 76th minute after Levante had withstood the hosts with tenacious defending.
This year's winner will be announced next Thursday in a virtual ceremony.
Juventus defeated Barcelona 3-0 in their last match of the CL group stage, while Man Utd suffered a 3-2 defeat to RB Leipzig which put an end to their campaign.
But poor performances this season have left Zinedine Zidane’s team needing a victory on Wednesday against Borussia Mönchengladbach to ensure the record 13-time European champions don't miss out on the knockout phase for the first time in the club's Champions League history.
Lionel Messi was fined 600 euros ($720) for taking his jersey off to pay tribute to Diego Maradona, the Spanish soccer federation said on Wednesday.
After the game, Messi posted a photo of his tribute alongside an older image of Maradona in the same shirt, adding the message “Farewell, Diego” in Spanish.
Messi celebrated his powerful strike from outside the box to cap the comfortable victory by taking off Barcelona’s blue-and-burgundy to bare the red-and-black of Maradona’s shirt from his stint at Newell’s Old Boys.
Chances of Messi becoming the saint-like mythical figure that Maradona became long before his death on November 25, 2020, look rather slim.
Thiago Alcantara, Kevin De Bruyne, Sadio Mane, Kylian Mbappe, Neymar, Sergio Ramos and Virgil van Dijk are the other nominees for the men's award which was won by Messi last year.
Barcelona coach Ronald Koeman is resting Messi and midfielder Frenkie de Jong for the game against Dynamo Kyiv, when the Catalan club can secure a spot in the knockout stage for the 17th straight season.
Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo will be 37 and Argentine sensation Lionel Messi will be 35 when the tournament kicks off on November 21, 2022.
Messi succeeded Mascherano as Argentina captain and at Barcelona, they won two Champions Leagues, two Club World Cups, and seven La Liga.
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