Magical Messi leads Barcelona to crucial victory over Villareal

Lionel Messi scored twice as Barcelona defeated Villareal 4 - 1 at Camp Nou

Neymar, returning from a three game ban also scored for the Catalan club

Barcelona's star man has surpassed 50 goals in five of the last ten seasons

Lionel Messi scored twice as Barcelona defeated 4 -1 at Camp Nou with the Argentina scoring his 50th and 51st for the season.

With his first goal, the Argentine became the first player in Europe's top five leagues to score 50 goals this season.


Messi scored twice against Villareal
Neymar opened the scoring in the game in the 27th minute but Cedric Bakambu qucikcly equalized ten minutes after.

Messi would however put Barcelona back in the lead on the stroke of halftime dribbling past a host of players before firing past the goalie albeit witha deflection.

The goal was his 34th in La Liga for the current campaign.

Luis Suarez added a third and Messi finished the job with a late penalty for his 35th La Liga goal of the season and his 51st in all competitions.


Suarez scored after dribbling past Mario to fire past the goalie
Messi also has 11 goals in the Champions League, one more than Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo and is the competition's current top scorer.

It is the fifth time in the last 10 seasons that the Argentine has surpassed 50 goals in all competitions, having set a personal best in 2011-12 when he netted an astonishing 73 goals in 60 appearances.


Messi's 50th and 51st this season arrives in his 49th game, with four of his goals coming in Barcelona's journey to the Copa del Rey final.

Luis Enrique's side take on Alaves in the final on May 27.