“From a low xG of just 0.03, Messi rifles a left-footed strike past Alavés to double Barça’s lead on the stroke of half-time, turning Busquets’ pass into the eventual winning goal and pushing his La Liga tally to 458 and career total to 723.”
Messi delivers a ruthless league display at 33, scoring twice and adding a slick assist to drive Barcelona’s response after a defeat and underline his ongoing dominance over Alavés.
From a tiny 0.03 xG chance, Messi lashes Dani Alves’ late cutback into the Osasuna net to restore Barça’s lead 3–2 in the 84th minute, a difficult left-foot winner that becomes La Liga goal number 42 of his career.
From an xG of just 0.03, Messi rifles a low-percentage left-foot strike past Espanyol in the Barcelona derby to stretch the lead to 2–0, a deceptively routine finish that actually seals his 50th goal of an absurdly prolific season.
With Argentina’s World Cup hopes teetering after the shock loss to Saudi Arabia, Messi breaks Mexico’s resistance with a Di María-assisted opener that finally unlocks the group campaign and becomes his eighth World Cup goal and 788th of his career.
From a chance worth just xG 0.034, Messi threads a brutally difficult left-foot finish to break the deadlock against Sporting Gijón, and the strike quietly writes history as his 300th La Liga goal.