The Argentine struck three times against Rayo Vallecano to
take his season tally to 41 as the Catalan giants ran riot in the Nou
Camp
Record breaker: Messi bagged three more goals against RayoLionel Messi has broken the record for the number of hat-tricks for a single club in Spanish football.
He struck three times as Barcelona demolished Rayo Vallecano 6-1 in the Nou Camp, which took his number of trebles to 32 - one more than Zarra managed for Athletic Bilbao.
It also took him to 24 hat-tricks in La Liga - more than any other player has managed in Spain's top flight.
The goals took him to 41 for the season, and 30 in La Liga, which draws him level with great rival Cristiano Ronaldo.
David Ramos
Double trouble: Messi combined brilliantly with Luis Suarez
And as if those numbers aren't enough - he is also the first person to score 40 goals in SIX different Spanish seasons.
Luis Suarez scored twice for Barca with Gerard Pique adding another in the rout.
The result takes them to the top of La Liga, after Real Madrid's surprise defeat to Bilbao yesterday.
The Germany midfielder has shot up LvG's wanted list after his No. 1 target broke down again
Knows his Lars from his elbow: Bender is now a top United objective
Lars Bender is now a target for Louis van Gaal, writes Neil Moxley in the Sunday People, after Kevin Strootman’s latest injury setback.
Germany
star Bender is on the Manchester United radar following a recurrence
of knee problems for Roma’s Dutch midfielder Strootman.
But Old Trafford’s Van Gaal will have to go head-to-head with Arsenal
, as boss Arsene Wenger has been a long-term fan of Bender and United’s
move will be a serious blow to the London club in their hunt for a
defensive midfielder.
United’s chief scout Jim Lawlor was at
last week’s Champions League clash between Bender’s Bayer Leverkusen and
Atletico Madrid. And United again had their top spies at the game with
Freiburg.
Former PSV midfielder Strootman, 25, is a long-standing
target of Van Gaal’s but has been sidelined since last March after
rupturing ligaments in his left knee.
Stroot of contention: Kevin was Van Gaal's priority, but can't get fit
Last month he broke down again – and although he has said he remains on course to begin playing again in the summer – United are looking for insurance.
Leverkusen are able to sell Bender this summer as they have cover themselves in the shape of Christoph Kramer.
They
loaned Kramer to Borussia Moenchengladbach this season and will take
him back, leaving them free to sell 25-year-old Bender.
One Ukrainian actress went to extreme lengths to prove that
she is the greatest Lionel Messi fan and the results are quite horrific
Actress Nataliya Kozhenova has hit the headlines in her native Ukraine for being that person to get Lionel Messi tattooed across her chest.
We conducted an in depth investigation to find out some information
about Nataliya - a quick Google search - to find IMBb credit her for one
film, 2013's Super Model.
Two years on an the actress
has unfortunately been unable to add to her acknowledge film lists and
has decided to become famous for a different, weirder reason.
You know by now that Row Zed love a good fan tattoo. We've had that Spurs supporter with a head tattoo, then you gave us the full back print and of course we've got Zlatan.
Even
with that in mind we have a very, very strong feeling that Nataliya is
going to regret her latest addition and to be honest, it's not even a
recent picture of him.
What do you think Iker?
Social media went into meltdown during last summer's showpiece event
when a photograph of Vanessa Huppenkothen wearing her nation's football
shirt went viral across Twitter.
And now FIFA Ballon d'Or winner Ronaldo is apparently dating the
football presenter, just months after breaking up with Irina Shayk.
According to reports in Spain, the pair fell for each other when Vanessa recently visited the country on business.
Ronaldo, 30, split with Shayk in January after five years together,
after which he said: "After dating for five years, my relationship with
Irina Shayk has come to an end.
"We believed it would be best for both of us to take this step now. I wish Irina the greatest happiness."
Arsenal recalled Coquelin from his loan at Charlton earlier this season, and the Frenchman hasn't looked back, playing the role of the defensive midfield enforcer that the Gunners had been crying out for.
With the vast array of attacking talent for the Emirates outfit, Coquelin acknowledges that his role is an important one.
"With every player we have got going forward, you need a man with a defensive mind as well.
"If I can give the team a good balance - because we have got quite a few players going forward - hopefully we can get back to keeping clean sheets soon."
Those two results mean top of the Championship Boro have shown they can match anyone in the FA Cup fifth round - even Arsene Wenger's Gunners at their Emirates HQ in north London.
Boro boss Karanka said: "I think Liverpool could have been a surprise, Man City was a surprise, but now everybody knows Middlesbrough.
"We played very well against City - very defensive, but very good - we are top of the table now so for them it is not going to be a surprise. It is going to be difficult, very difficult."
Jack the lad: Wilshere with Archie and his brother Leyton
Nine-year-old Archie Hill, who suffers from life-limiting muscle wasting diseaseDuchenne muscular dystrophy, was spotted by the Gunners star during a television interview the Hill family did last month.
Wilshere, 23, was impressed with how Archie had written to Prime Minister David Cameron asking for some help in his fight against the debilitating illness.
Archie's mum, Louisa, said: "We were absolutely staggered when the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign called us to say Jack had been in touch about meeting Archie. We have had to keep the secret for weeks!
“Meeting Jack was absolutely amazing. He spent hours with the boys, in the garden, on the computer and chatting away.
However, the 24-year-old was given a pick-me-up this week after receiving the gong from the Championship Bees, despite playing just 28 games!
Szczesny was handed his league debut by Brentford against Walsall back in November 2009 and his form for the west Londoners paved the way to the Gunners first team.
Spot on: Szczesny saves a penalty against Wycombe back in 2009
His exploits haven't been forgotten by the Griffin Park faithful either after he topped a week-long Twitter poll to mark 10 years of the Football League Awards.
Each club selects up to four players to go be put forward to the judges, which will be whittled down to find a ‘Team of the Decade’.
The Roma midfielder has been linked with a move to Anfield, and the Reds manager was snapped in the Vatican after a swift departure following the Spurs game
Target: Could Pjanic be on his way to Anfield?
Liverpool FC manager Brendan Rodgers swift exit after the 3-2 win over Tottenham on Tuesday appears to have been to visit Rome.
The Ulsterman did not attend the post-match Press conference, handing over media duties to assistant Colin Pascoe.
When the Reds number two was asked about his boss’ whereabouts he said: “He had to shoot off after the game sharpish as he had a meeting in Europe, report the Liverpool Echo.
“It’s a club matter and it’s none of your business.”
However, a photograph has now emerged online of Rodgers, wearing dark sunglasses, posing with a fan outside the Vatican with speculation suggesting that he might have been in the Italian capital to do some groundwork on trying to signRoma midfielder Miralem Pjanic.
The Bosnian international has 56 caps and turns 25 in April.
Pjanic was raised in Luxembourg after his family moved there when he was an infant ahead of the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina and he represented them at Under-17s and Under-19s level before reverting to his country of birth.
He started his career in France, joining Metz’s youth academy aged 14 and moved to Lyon when he was 18.
Pjanic spent three seasons at the Stade de Gerland before joining Roma in an 11 million euros deal in 2011.
Described as an ‘old-fashioned playmaker’ with huge technical qualities, he is known for his passing, dribbling, creativity, vision, and free-kick ability.
