Lionel Messi News: Barcelona superstar closes in on all-time club record

What's the story?

Barcelona captain Lionel Messi is closing in on the club's all-time league appearances record, currently held by former teammate Xavi Hernandez.

In case you didn't know...

Messi appears to be enjoying phenomenal form this season, having netted 34 goals in just 33 appearances for the club. The Argentine also has 18 assists to his name.

The 31-year-old has led Barcelona to the top of the Spanish top-flight where they sit seven points clear at the top of the league table. The club also reached the Copa del Rey final after defeating arch rivals Real Madrid last week and are in contention for the Champions League title.

In addition, the Catalan giants enjoyed a second Clasico victory last week, beating Los Blancos in LaLiga at the Santiago Bernabeu.

The heart of the matter

Messi had previously equaled Andres Iniesta's league record after making his 442nd appearance for the club. Should he be fielded in the game against Rayo Vallecano on Saturday, the five-time Ballon d'Or winner will surpass Iniesta to become the player with the second highest number of league appearances for Barcelona.

The Argentine will also close in on Xavi's all-time record of 505 LaLiga appearances for Barcelona, which is 63 more than where Messi and Iniesta are at.

The duo is followed by Carles Puyol (392 appearances) and Migueli (391 appearances). Messi’s current teammates Sergio Busquets and Gerard Piqué are not far off with 336 and 302 appearances respectively.

In all competitions, Messi is just three appearances away from Iniesta (674), while Xavi is at the very top with 767 appearances.