5 landmarks awaiting Lionel Messi in 2020

Lionel Messi loves to score goals and break records. Seven years after his stunning 91-goal haul in 2012, Messi's 50 goals in 2019 marked the 9th time in 10 years the Argentinian maestro racked up a half century of goals for club and country during a calendar year.

Messi won a record-tying 6th Pichichi award (most goals in a LaLiga season) as Barcelona won their 4th Spanish top-flight title in 5 seasons. 6 goals in as many Champions League games almost carried Barcelona to their first final in the competition in 4 years, before a stunning Liverpool fightback upended the Catalan club's European ambitions for the season.

#1 Take the outright lead in most Champions League hat-tricks

Messi, along with Cristiano Ronaldo, share the record for most hat-tricks by a player in the UEFA Champions League. The duo's tally of 8 hat-tricks apiece in the competition is almost triple the next best tally of hat-tricks (3) achieved by the quartet of Filippo Inzaghi, Mario Gomez, Luis Adriano and Robert Lewandowski.

With Barcelona reaching the knockout round of the 2019-20 Champions League as one of 6 unbeaten teams, Messi would look to usurp Ronaldo and claim the outright record for most hat-tricks in the competition.

Also check out: La Liga La Liga fixtures La liga table 2019-20

#2 Become the second player ever to score 50 knockout stage goals in the Champions League

Lionel Messi's tally of 114 Champions League goals is only bettered by Cristiano Ronaldo (128). Messi's 46 knockout stage goals in the competition is also only dwarfed by Ronaldo's tally of 65.

4 more goals in the 2019-20 Champions League would see Messi join Ronaldo as the only players to score 50 or more goals in the knockout stage of the competition.

Messi already holds the record for most group-stage goals in the Champions League (68), which as a standalone number is good enough for 4th place in the list of all-time scorers in the competition.

#3 Score a record-extending 450th Liga goal

With 432 goals to his name, Messi is the all-time top-scorer in the history of Spain's Primera Liga - and is over 120 goals clear of the next highest tally in the list (Cristiano Ronaldo - 311 goals).

Messi has racked up 13 goals in as many games during the 2019-20 season, and 34 goals in 32 games during the year. Thus, its only a matter of when and not if, for Messi to score his 450th goal in the Liga.

Considering the pace at which he has scored Liga goals during the season, it is not inconceivable to imagine that the Argentine maestro could arrive at the landmark before the 2019-20 season ends.

#4 Win a record 7th Pichichi award

Messi won his third consecutive Pichichi award (top-scorer in a Liga season) by scoring a league-best 34 goals as Barcelona won their 4th Spanish top-flight title in 5 seasons. In the process, Messi tied Telmo Zarra's 1952-53 record of most Pichichi awards (6) won by a player.

Messi won his first 3 Pichichi awards in 2009-10, 2011-12, and 2012-13 respectively.

With Messi netting 13 goals in as many Liga games in 2019-20 and topping the Liga scoring charts before the winter break, the Barcelona and Argentina captain could win a record-7th Pichichi award at the end of the season.

#5 Win his first senior international title with Argentina

With a rather dismal return of 1 goal in 6 Copa America games as Argentina lost to eventual winners Brazil in the 2019 semifinals, the 2020 Copa America represents perhaps Messi's final realistic opportunity to win his much coveted first senior international trophy for the Albiceleste.

Despite his fabulous records and trophies in club football, Messi has largely struggled to replicate that form for the national team. The Barcelona captain has fallen short in two Copa America finals, and also the World Cup final, with Argentina.