- Pele previously held the record with 643 goals for Brazilian side Santos
- Messi joined Barcelona at the age of 13 and made his competitive debut at 17
- He scored the side’s third goal in a comfortable 3-0 victory against Valladolid
- Mental Health and Psychosocial considerations during the COVID-19
Lionel Messi broke Pele’s all-time one-club goalscoring record after netting Barcelona’s third in their 3-0 LaLiga victory against Real Valladolid on Tuesday night.
Brazilian legend Pele had previously held the record with 643 goals for Santos, but Messi joined him on that figured when he equalised in Saturday’s 2-2 draw against Valencia.
But Messi went one further than the Brazilian icon in midweek, scoring his 644th goal for Barcelona at Valladolid to move them to three games unbeaten and within two points of fourth-placed Villarreal in LaLiga.
Pele achieved the feat for Santos between 1956 and 1974, while Messi is in his 17th season at the Nou Camp since his first-team debut in 2004.
Messi also finally got his first assist of the season when he picked out defender Clement Lenglet with a splendid cross and the Frenchman rose to head Barca in front after 21 minutes.
The Argentine also had a hand in Barca’s second goal, laying on a pass for right back Sergino Dest to latch on to down the right flank and play a cross into the path of Martin Braithwaite, who slid in to score in the 35th minute.
Messi capped a brilliant individual and team display with a splendid goal midway through the second half, running in behind to meet a pass from teenager Pedri and slotting into the far bottom corner to eclipse Pele’s scoring mark with Santos.
It was Barca’s first away league win in five matches but they remain fifth, moving on to 24 points after 14 games.
Atletico Madrid are top with 32 points from 13 games after a 2-0 win at Real Sociedad earlier on Tuesday night.
