(MENAFN- Arab Times) BARCELONA Spain March 8 (AP): Lionel Messi scored a record-setting hat trick to help Barcelona rout Rayo Vallecano 6-1 and take the lead of the Spanish league on Sunday. Messi's three second-half goals completed his 32nd career treble in all competitions for Barcelona breaking a Spanish record held by former Athletic Bilbao great Telmo Zarra with 31. Messi also became the all-time leader in hat tricks scored in the league with 24 one more than rival Real Madrid star Cristiano Ronaldo.
The Argentina forward made sure Barcelona capitalized on Madrid's latest slip a 1-0 loss to Athletic Bilbao on Saturday to move one point ahead at the top of the table with the fierce rivals set to meet in the Catalan capital in two weeks. Luis Suarez got Barcelona going in the sixth minute at Camp Nou with his first of two goals before Gerard Pique tapped in a ball Jordi Alba had headed off the post four minutes after halftime. Messi's treble in a 13-minute span came after he missed his second penalty in as many weeks following Roberto 'Tito' Triguero's sending off for a second booking. But the referee ordered the spot kick to be repeated because a Rayo player had entered the box and the Argentine wasn't denied a second time. He then struck twice more to equal Ronaldo's competition-leading tally of 30 goals in 26 rounds. Ronaldo had once looked set to run away with the league's individual scoring title when he led Messi by a margin of 25-13 goals through 15 rounds. The three goals took Messi's season tally overall to 41 goals in 38 games as he reached the 40-goal mark for a sixth consecutive season. Barcelona also finished with 10 men when Dani Alves saw red for fouling Alberto Bueno who converted the late penalty. Suarez scored again in stoppage time for his sixth goal in his last four appearances as the former Liverpool striker finds his stride in time for crucial upcoming matches against Madrid in the league Manchester City in the Champions League and a Copa del Rey final against Athletic Bilbao. Barcelona now leads the standings for the first time since the ninth round more than four months ago. 'We have gotten to where we are by playing each game as it comes' said Luis Enrique. 'But only one team will win the Copa and only one will win the league the same with the Champions League so we have to be prudent and remember there are rivals trying to achieve the same thing.' Luis Enrique said that Neymar wasn't in the squad for Sunday's game because he had been given permission by the club to return home to Brazil. Rayo coach Paco Jemez had said before the match that he didn't care if his team 'lost by one or seven goals' as long as it stayed true to its style. And his side paid a heavy price for playing a high defensive line which often left its goalkeeper Cristian Alvarez to act as a sweeper and fend for himself. Despite the lopsided loss Jemez said he was 'satisfied' with his team's effort as it slipped into 12th place following Real Sociedad's win. Messi had a spot kick saved by Alvarez a week after City goalkeeper Joe Hart blocked his try but this time he was able to retake the penalty and drove in Barcelona's third goal in the 56th. Messi was well placed to finish off Alvarez's save of Suarez's shot in the 62nd and six minutes later he dribbled past the goalkeeper to roll in his third. Barcelona's big win came a day after Madrid's defeat at Bilbao which followed a home draw against Villarreal. Sociedad edged visitors Espanyol 1-0 thanks to Sergio Canales' 38th-minute goal after goalkeeper Kiko Casilla gifted him the ball. Espanyol stayed 10th just ahead of Sociedad. Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti blamed his players for being too individualistic following their surprise 1-0 defeat at mid-table Athletic Bilbao in La Liga on Saturday. The pressure on the Italian has been growing since Real were hammered 4-0 by Atletico Madrid at the start of February and his team again lacked drive and a battling edge especially in the first half against Bilbao. 'We were too individualistic and the players were looking to find solutions on their own when we needed to play quicker and with fewer touches' Ancelotti told a news conference. Aritz Aduriz headed Bilbao in front after 26 minutes and Real were able to create little at the other end despite the quality they have in attack.
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.