“From a tight first-half deadlock against Deportivo, Messi meets Dani Alves’ cut-back with a calm left-foot finish from a central angle, breaking the 0–0 and pushing his La Liga tally to 62 career goals (105 overall).”
Messi’s brace drives Barcelona’s league win over Deportivo, with two goals from nine shots and relentless dribbling runs as a 22-year-old emerging star dictates the entire attacking flow for 90 minutes.
From just outside the box against Osasuna, Messi pauses over the ball then whips a rising left-foot strike into the far top corner, a trademark yet visually stunning finish that seals a 4–0 win and becomes career goal number 712 and his 448th in La Liga.
From just inside the box, Messi pauses Rakitić’s pass with a dead stop, then whips a sudden left-footed strike across goal into the far corner to make it 4–1, his second of the night and career goal number 560.
From a crowded central channel with barely any backlift, Messi threads a low left‑foot shot through defenders into the far corner to drag Barça level at 1–1, a deceptively simple equalizer that becomes La Liga goal number 213 and his 343rd career strike.
With Barcelona clinging to a one-goal lead, Messi bends in a low-probability strike (xG 0.0589) to finally shake off Deportivo in a 5–4 thriller, completing his hat-trick and bringing up career goal 299.