Q FM Africa's Modern Radio
Barcelona forward Lionel Messi set a Champions League scoring record of 74 goals when he netted a hat-trick in Tuesday’s 4-0 Group F win at Apoel Nicosia.
The Barca and Argentina captain surpassed the record of 71 he jointly held with former Real Madrid and Schalke 04 striker Raul when he put his side 2-0 ahead shortly before halftime.
The 27-year-old added two more goals in the second half to complete his 31st career treble, his fifth in Europe’s elite club competition and the first in which he has scored all three with his less-favoured right foot.
“I am pleased to have achieved such a nice record in such a nice and important competition but the really important thing is the three points,” Messi said in a television interview.
His achievement is the latest milestone in a stellar career and comes three days after he broke the six decades-old La Liga scoring record with a hat-trick in Barca’s 5-1 home win over Sevilla.
Messi overhauled former Athletic Bilbao striker Telmo Zarra’s tally of 251 goals, set in 1955, and has 253 in 289 league games for the Catalan club he joined as a 13-year-old.