Lionel Messi

Lionel Messi  (born 24 June 1987)

Lionel Andrés "Leo" Messi Cuccittini  is an Argentine footballer who plays as a forward for Spanish club FC Barcelona and the Argentina national team.By the age of 21, Messi had received Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year nominations. The following year, in 2009, he won his first Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year awards. He followed this up by winning the inaugural FIFA Ballon d'Orin 2010, and then again in 2011 and 2012. He also won the 2010–11 UEFA Best Player in Europe Award. At the age of 24, Messi became Barcelona's all-time top scorer in all official club competitions. At age 25, Messi became the youngest player to score 200 goals in La Liga.

Commonly ranked as the best player in the world and rated by some in the sport as the greatest of all time, Messi is the first football player in history to win four FIFA/Ballons d'Or, all of which he won consecutively, and the first to win threeEuropean Golden Shoe awards. With Barcelona, Messi has won six La Ligas, two Copas del Rey, six Supercopas de España, three UEFA Champions Leagues, two UEFA Super Cups and two Club World Cups.

Messi is the first and only player to top-score in four consecutive Champions League campaigns, and also holds the record for themost hat-tricks scored (4) in the competition. In March 2012, Messi made Champions League history by becoming the first player to score five goals in one match. He also matched José Altafini's record of 14 goals in a single Champions League season. Messi set the European record for most goals scored in a season during the 2011–12 season, with 73 goals. In the same season, he set the current goal scoring record in a single La Liga season, scoring 50 goals. Also in that season, Messi became the first player ever to score and assist in six different official competitions in one season. On 16 February 2013, Messi scored his 300th Barcelona goal. On 30 March 2013, Messi scored in his 19th consecutive La Liga game, becoming the first footballer in history to net in consecutive matches against every team in a professional football league. He extended his record scoring streak to 21 consecutive league matches, and the run came to a halt only when he sustained a hamstring injury. In March 2014, with a hat-trick against Real Madrid, Messi became the player with the most goals and most hat-tricks in the history of El Clásico.

Messi helped Argentina win the 2005 FIFA U-20 World Cup, finishing as both the best player and the top scorer (with 6 goals). In 2006, he became the youngest Argentine to play and score in the FIFA World Cup, and won a runners-up medal at the Copa América in 2007, in which he was named young player of the tournament. In 2008, he won an Olympic Gold Medal with the Argentina Olympic football team. At the 2014 World Cup, he led Argentina to the final, winning four consecutive Man of the Match awards in the process, and received the Golden Ball award after being adjudged the player of the tournament. In 2013, SportsProrated him the second-most marketable athlete in the world. His playing style and stature have drawn comparisons to compatriot Diego Maradona, who himself declared Messi his "successor".

In December 2012, Barcelona announced that Messi would sign a five-year contract extension which will keep him at the club until 2018 and raising his base salary to €16 million ($21.2 million) net, which will make him the highest on-field earner in football. As the tax bracket for this level of income in Spain is 56%, it means that Barcelona will have to pay Messi's income tax of a little over €20 million ($26.5 million). His formal buy-out clause remains at €250 million.

Records

As of 5 June 2014.

World

• Most FIFA Ballon d'Or awards: 4.
• Guinness World Records title for the most goals in a year: 91 goals.
• Most international goals in a year (club and national team): 25 goals. (shared with Vivian Woodward)

• Most consecutive league matches scored in: 21 matches (33 goals)

• First footballer ever to score consecutively against all teams in a professional league.

Europe

• Most European Golden Shoe awards: 3.
• Most goals scored in a season (club): 73 goals.
• Most goals scored in a year (club): 79 goals.
• Most European Cup top scorer awards: 4 (shared with Gerd Müller).
• Most consecutive European Cup top scorer awards: 4.
• Most hat-tricks in UEFA Champions League: 4 hat-tricks.
• Highest scorer in a UEFA Champions League game: 5 goals.
• Most goals scored in UEFA Champions League knockout phase: 31 goals.
• Only player to score in 21 different cities in the European Cup

Argentina

• Most goals scored in a year (national team): 12 goals (shared with Gabriel Batistuta)

Spain

• Most goals scored for a single club: 354 goals
• Most away goals scored in La Liga history: 107 goals
• Most goals scored in La Liga in a season: 50 goals
• Most consecutive La Liga matches scored in: 21 matches (33 goals)
• Most La Liga hat-tricks in a season: 8 hat-tricks
• Youngest player to score 200 La Liga goals: 25 years
• First player to score at least 25 goals in 5 consecutive seasons in La Liga (shared with Cristiano Ronaldo)
• Most goals scored in El Clásico matches: 21 goals
• Most hat-tricks in El Clásico matches: 2
• Most goals scored in the Supercopa de España: 10 goals

Barcelona

• Top scorer in official competitions: 354 goals
• Top scorer in La Liga: 243 goals
• Top scorer in UEFA Champions League: 67 goals
• Top scorer in European competitions: 68 goals
• Top scorer in international competitions: 72 goals
• Most hat-tricks in official competitions: 26 hat-tricks
• Most hat-tricks in La Liga: 19 hat-tricks