Paris Saint-Germain superstar Lionel Messi produced a spellbinding performance against Maccabi Haifa on Tuesday, scoring two fabulous goals.
Messi opened the scoring as Paris Saint-Germain ran riot to beat Maccabi Haifa in the Champions League, but it was his second goal – a delicate strike from outside of the box – that stole headlines.
That goal means the Argentine has scored more goals from outside the box (23) than anyone else in the competition since his debut in 2004/05; one more than Manchester United’s Cristiano Ronaldo, per Opta.
Messi broke another of Ronaldo’s Champions League records in PSG’s first group stage meeting with Maccabi, as he became the first player to score against 39 different teams in the competition.
Maccabi didn’t make it easy for PSG, coming up with answers in the form of goals to keep the tie somewhat competitive, but Christophe Galtier’s side simply had too much in attack, with Messi rolling back the years in a dazzling performance.
Opta also revealed that Messi – 35 years, 123 days – is the oldest player to score and assist twice in one Champions League game.
He is also currently the only player to score 10+ goals and make 10+ assists in all competitions among players in Europe’s top five leagues this season.
The 35-year-old is firmly back to his superhuman best and will want to keep up his rampant form for PSG in the final stretch of domestic fixtures before next month’s World Cup, where he’ll lead out Argentina once again.
