By starting in Sunday's La Liga match against Real Sociedad, Lionel Messi officially became Barcelona's all-time appearance leader. He surpassed Xavi's previous mark, reaching a career total of 768 games for the club across all competitions.
Lionel Messi’s start on Sunday’s La Liga game against Real Sociedad saw him becoming Barcelona’s all-time highest appearance maker. Messi with this record has now surpassed Xavi, who held the record earlier. Messi has now played 768 matches for Barcelona in all competitions.
Despite rumors suggesting the 33-year-old might depart the club once the current season concludes, nothing is certain yet. Regardless, Messi's impact is permanent; he is widely regarded as the greatest player to ever represent Barcelona, backed by an unparalleled list of achievements.
Barcelona honored Messi's achievement via social media, posting a Twitter collage that traced his evolution at the club and highlighted his goal celebrations, with '768 Games' prominently displayed. Their Instagram tribute was even more succinct, captioning the post \"A L O N E A T T H E T O P\". Having debuted in La Liga in 2004, Messi has spent years rewriting the club's record books. This latest milestone triggered a wave of celebratory messages from supporters worldwide.
Of his 768 total appearances, the majority—511 matches—were played in La Liga. He also featured in 149 Champions League games, 79 Copa del Rey matches, 20 Spanish Super Cup fixtures, 5 Club World Cup appearances, and 4 European Super Cup matches.
Looking at the results, Messi was on the winning side in 536 of those 768 games, while 140 ended in draws and 91 resulted in losses. Beyond just playing time, he remains the club's greatest goal-scorer with 661 goals. Furthermore, his 120 goals in the Champions League make him Barcelona's most prolific scorer in European competition.
To mark the occasion, the Argentine bagged two goals in a dominant 6-1 victory over Real Sociedad. This win allows Barcelona to put pressure on league leaders Atletico Madrid, narrowing the gap to just 4 points.
With his brace on Sunday, Messi has pushed his league goal count to 23, putting him 4 goals ahead of Luis Suarez. This follows a similar performance in his previous match against Huesca, where he also scored twice while equaling Xavi's appearance record.