Barcelona’s Lionel Messi hit the headlines once again last night – but not just for his goalscoring exploits.
Messi scored twice in Barcelona’s 5-2 win over Getafe, with both goals arriving inside the first half.
Ronald Koeman’s men led 3-1 at half-time, before the visitors threatened a comeback when former Manchester City forward Enes Unal pulled one back.
Ronald Araujo then restored Barcelona’s two-goal advantage, before they won a penalty in stoppage time.
Messi is Barca’s usual penalty taker, and had the chance to score yet another hat-trick.
But instead, he handed the ball over to team-mate Antoine Griezmann, who had not got his name on the scoresheet at that point.
The Frenchman converted the spot kick, and made sure to thank Messi during the celebration.
And the Argentinian was praised across social media for his actions:
It was another memorable night for Messi, who moved on to 30 goal involvements in 2021 alone. We’re not even four months in.
He has 25 goals in LaLiga – the same amount as he scored in the whole of last season. With seven games still to play, Barcelona sit third in the table, five points off leaders Atletico Madrid with a game in hand.
With Real Madrid separating both sides in second, it should be a thrilling conclusion to the campaign.
Messi and Barca are next in action on Sunday, when they take on Unai Emery’s Villarreal.
Koeman’s side secured their first trophy of the season last week, when they defeated Athletic Bilbao 4-0 in the Copa del Rey final.
Featured Image Credit: Getty