Lionel Messi scored twice as Barcelona won their La Liga match against Leganes at Butarque on Saturday. The win put the Catalan giants on top of the table with nine points in four matches, ahead of rivals Real Madrid on goal difference. Madrid will play their fourth match on Sunday away to Espanyol.
Messi scored the first goal after a clever assist from Luis Suarez within the first 15 minutes of the game. Suarez dribbled past Leganes defenders and then passed the ball to Messi, who was near the goal to tap it in to get Barcelona on the scoresheet. The Argentinian returned the favour to help Suarez score the second for the game in the 31st minute. Messi was at his sublime best as he cut past two defenders to pass the ball to Suarez for the second.
The Uruguayan set up Neymar for the third goal in the 44th minute of the game to leave Leganes struggling at 0-3 down before halftime. After the second half began, Messi scored the fourth from the spot as Leganes’s Bustinza brought Neymar down in the box in the 55th minute of the game. Rafinha made it five after a superb strike from outside the box in the 64th minute to make it 5-0 for Barcelona.
Leganes managed to get one back in the 80th minute via Gabriel's splendid free kick. However, it wasn't enough to stop Barcelona from bagging all three points. They will face Atletico Madrid on Wednesday in their next match.