If you thought La Pulga had trouble scoring past Los Rojiblancos, think again. The stats say otherwise.

On Sunday, La Liga leaders Barcelona will travel to Madrid to lock horns with third-placed Atletico. The trip to the Vicente Calderon will hand the Blaugrana a chance of sealing the title, if they match second-placed Real Madrid’s score from their fixture on the very same day.

Argentince ace Lionel Messi has a lot at stake in Sunday’s game, other than the league crown. The 27-year-old is currently in a tight race with Los Blancos star Cristiano Ronaldo for the Pichichi, with La Pulga currently on 40 goals, trailing the Portuguese attacker by two goals.

However, Ronaldo will visit Espanyol this weekend, and his track record at the Estadi Cornellà-El Prat is atrocious, handing Leo a golden opportunity to leapfrog the former Manchester United winger.

Many doubt Messi’s chances of scoring past Diego Simeone’s crew, however. The four-time Ballon d’Or winner’s struggles against Los Rojiblancos in over the past two seasons are well documented, with former goalkeeper Thiabaut Courtois, currently at Chelsea, shutting down the Argentine on several occasions. 

Courtois and Atletico proved to be a nightmare for Messi in recent times

Lionel Mesii, Thibaut Courtois, Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, La Liga

However, a look at Messi’s stats vs Atletico Madrid paints a totally different picture. Of all the teams he has faced from the Spanish Primera Division, no team has he scored more goals against in all competitions than Atletico Madrid, with 22 goals, tied with Sevilla.

One more goal against the Madrid side and they will become his favorite victims. In La Liga only, however, Atletico drop to second behind Sevilla with 17 strikes.

In 25 clashes with Atletico Madrid, Messi has been involved in a whopping 26 goals, scoring 22 past last year's Liga BBVA champions and assisting four.

This means only one thing, Atletico may have found a way to stop Leo in recent times, but they are in no way his kryptonite, his Achilles heel. In fact, as pointed out by the stats, they are his favorite punching.