Barcelona’s thrilling Super Cup win over Sevilla on Sunday means Lionel Messi became the most successful player in the Catalan club’s history.
The Argentine playing for the first time since the World Cup to lead Barcelona in the traditional curtain-raiser, played overseas for the first time in Tangier, Tunisia .
And that lack of playing time seemed to take its toll on Messi and his team-mates early on, when Pablo Sarabia converted to give Sevilla the lead.
However, Barca responded with Messi in the thick of the action as usual.
The captain’s free-kick rebounded via the woodwork into the path of Gerard Pique, who turned in to level the scores at the end of the first half.
Ousmane Dembele later made it 2-1 with a thumping long-range finish, while Sevilla squandered a golden chance to equalise when Wissam Ben Yedder saw his penalty saved in the final seconds.
Having succeeded Andres Iniesta’s as Blaugrana captain, it fell on Messi to lift the Supercopa trophy, a landmark achievement for the amazing Argentine.
That win means Messi has now lifted 33 titles during his Barcelona career, more than any other player in the club’s history.
