Messi equals most appearance record in Barcelona
Baku, March 16, AZERTAC
Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi equaled club legend Xavi Hernandez's appearance record in the club, playing in his 767th match for the Spanish powerhouse on Monday evening, according to Anadolu Agency.
"Leo Messi keeps setting new highs and with his appearance in the starting XI [eleven] against Huesca on Monday, he adds another special record to his collection, setting a club record of 767 appearances in a Barça shirt," Barcelona said on its website.
Barca thrashed Huesca 4-1 at Camp Nou Stadium as Messi scored two goals.
In addition, Barcelona did a video to pay tribute to the Argentine superstar as both former and current Barcelona players praised him in this video.
"Leo #Messi, touching the sky #Messi767," Barcelona said on Twitter. Messi will be the record holder in this field if he plays against Real Sociedad in a La Liga match on Sunday.
A pure Barcelona product, Xavi, 41, played for Barca in 1998-2015. Former Spanish midfielder Xavi left Barcelona in 2015 to join Qatar's Al-Sadd. Then he retired from the game in 2019.
Messi, who is a longtime Barcelona forward, beat the club's many veterans such as Andres Iniesta (674 matches), Sergio Busquets (617), Carles Puyol (593), and Gerard Pique (558).
Spanish midfielder Iniesta played for Barcelona from 2002 to 2018. The 36-year-old is now playing for Japan's Vissel Kobe.
Puyol, 42, was a Barcelona regular in 1999-2014 and then he retired from football.
Busquets and Pique are still active Barcelona players.
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