FC Barcelona vs Rayo Vallecano: Hits and Flops | LaLiga 2018-19

#1 Hit: Lionel Messi

You can drop a tarantula in his shorts and he'll still be cool: Ray Hudson on Lionel Messi

To find Leo Messi in the hit list is almost inevitable, he does something in the pitch to end up here. Who remembers when he tiptoed past the defenders just a shot away from scoring? Who remembers when he found a lazy through ball to Nelson Semedo? These are just Messi things, magical even when not that elegant.

The free-kick from Messi was picture-perfect, right above the defence, bending straight into Gerard Pique's head. The penalty was cool as ice, a slow run-up and watching Dimitrievski till the last moment before tapping the ball in. He should have had another assist had Coutinho finished off the ball from Messi's pass.

Now even though, he was not very good in counter-attacks, not at his sharpest when dribbling, not at the sharpest with passing, he still got the goal and the assist. And to think he should have had two more assists if Coutinho had finished the 1v1 and also if Suarez had finished from a side angle. Even the most average Lionel Messi performance is a hit performance. La Pulga for a reason.