15 of Lionel Messi’s best La Liga records that will never be broken | OneFootball

Lionel Messi finally brought down the curtain on his 21-year Barcelona career last summer – but his legacy in Spain is eternal.

Since making his La Liga debut in October 2004, Messi has won 10 league titles while breaking hundreds of records in the process.

We’ve taken a look at 15 of the best La Liga records that he currently holds – and will surely never be broken.

– Messi is La Liga’s all-time leading goalscorer, netting 474 goals in 520 appearances. Karim Benzema is now the leading active goalscorer in La Liga with 217 goals.

– The 34-year-old holds the record for most goals in a single La Liga season, scoring 50 goals in 37 league games in 2011-12.

– Messi has the most home goals (277) and away goals (197) in La Liga history.

– The Barcelona legend holds the record for most home goals (35 in 2011-12) and away goals (24 in 2012-13) scored in a single season.

– He won the Pichichi trophy as La Liga’s top scorer eight times, more than any other player in the history of the competition.

– Messi scored against 38 different opponents in the Spanish top-flight, surpassing the record of 35 held by Raul Gonzalez and Aritz Aduriz.

– He is the only player to score consecutively against all opposition teams in La Liga, a feat he achieved in 2012-13.

– The Argentina international overtook Cristiano Ronaldo to become the player with the most free-kick goals (39) in La Liga.

– Messi holds the record for most braces (116), hat-tricks (36) and four-goal hauls (5) scored in La Liga.

– Messi is also renowned for creating chances for his team-mates and has 192 La Liga assists, more than any other player.

– He holds the record for most assists in a single La Liga season, registering 21 in 2019-20.

– The forward is the only player to score 20+ La Liga goals and make 20+ La Liga assists in a single season, a feat he achieved in 2019-20.

– Messi holds the record for most La Liga Player of the Month awards with eight.

– No non-Spanish players have made more La Liga appearances than Messi (520).

– He won 383 La Liga games during his time with Barcelona, no player has ever won more games in the competition.