Lionel Messi Has Been Involved In More Than 800 Goals For Barcelona

Lionel Messi has had an incredible career at Barcelona.

In fact, the 31-year-old Argentine ace's unreal stats for the Spanish club speak volumes about his influence on the pitch.

Excluding friendlies, the Barça captain has made 660 appearances for his team and scored 576 times.

Oh, and that's not to mention the 225 assists that he has racked up for the reigning La Liga champions, too.

If we're talking about his exploits for Argentina, then Messi has made 128 appearances for his country, scored 65 times and created 40 assists.

Considering that he is scheduled to return for the 2019 Copa América, there's plenty of time for him to add to his international stats.

So, how does it compare with Cristiano Ronaldo's stats?

Well, thanks to the folks at Messi vs Ronaldo, there's a full side-by-side comparison between the two five-time Ballon d'Or winners.

The Juventus ace has made 787 appearances across his club career (again, excluding friendlies), scored 589 times and assisted on 187 occasions.

It's safe to say that both players are out of this world.

Former Manchester United boss José Mourinho was one of the most recent footballing figures to be asked about the prospect of choosing between Messi and Ronaldo.

Meanwhile, Chelsea star Eden Hazard put his full support behind Messi being the greatest player of all time.

"Two GOATs [greatest of all time] you say? No way. There is only one GOAT: him, Lionel Messi!" he told Het Laatste Nieuws.

"Those two games against Barcelona were not my best memories of 2018. I was happy to play against Barcelona and Messi, but I didn't deliver what I expected. I was disillusioned.

"My three sons were there for the home match at Stamford Bridge.

"The eldest is a big Messi fan -- all of us are Messi fans, actually. He wanted to see Messi that day, because Messi is a special player."

How far will Barcelona progress in the Champions League this season?

Let us know in the comments.

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: Football News, Football, Barcelona, Lionel Messi, Ballon d'Or, Juventus, Copa America, Cristiano Ronaldo, La Liga, Barca

Adnan Riaz

Adnan Riaz is a journalist for SPORTbible. He studied for a B.A. in History at the University of York and followed it up with an M.A. in Multimedia Journalism at MMU. Before he started writing about sports, he spent over four years in the gaming press. He has worked for several publications, including Hardcore Gamer, LADbible and the Manchester Evening News. Follow him on Twitter to find out what he is working on next. Got a story tip for Adnan? Email him: [email protected]

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