Barcelona's unbeaten run continues, and needless to say, their scintillating form this season has very much to do with Lionel Messi.
The Argentine ace scored one more hat-trick for Los Blaugranas against Leganés, which marks the 40th time he's done it with the Catalan giants. Furthermore, he reached 29 goals in La Liga, good enough to match Mohamed Salah's tally in the race to win the Golden Shoe.
Lionel Messi has now scored 40 hat-tricks for Barcelona across all competitions:
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) April 7, 2018
LaLiga (29)
Champions League (7)
Copa del Rey (3)
Supercopa (1)
Yet another Messi match ball. pic.twitter.com/9k7cC2h3Fi
"La Pulga" is showing his best form as the final months of the season approach.
Lionel Messi has now scored 12 goals in his last nine games after his 45th career hat-trick for club or country. #UCL pic.twitter.com/z7YAvjr1Hv
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) April 7, 2018
But what really made Messi's hat-trick something special was the fact that, with this win, Barcelona matched a 38-year-old record in La Liga, as Los Blaugranas have gone 38 games undefeated since last season, matching Real Sociedad's record achieved in the 1979-80 season.
Two historic clubs.
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) April 7, 2018
Two legendary teams.
38 games unbeaten in @LaLiga. @RealSociedad 1979/80 @FCBarcelona 2017/18 pic.twitter.com/Kd7TXpc7tH
games unbeaten - equalling the @LaLiga record! pic.twitter.com/cABfeHnTzu
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) April 7, 2018
Can you imagine your team going unbeaten for an entire year in league matches? Well, tomorrow Barcelona will celebrate that feat!
Barcelona equal the La Liga record of 38 games without defeat, matching Real Sociedad’s unbeaten run in 1979 & 1980
— Sky Sports Statto (@SkySportsStatto) April 7, 2018
Since the 2-0 defeat at Malaga on April 8, 2017, Barcelona’s record is:
P38 W31 D7 F107 A25 pic.twitter.com/7YHRHBwTj4