“It’s a pride to have reached this number of matches in the Barcelona shirt” - Lionel Messi on reaching a massive milestone

Another day, another Barcelona milestone for Lionel Messi. During a stellar club career with Barcelona, Messi unsurprisingly holds most club records and has achieved a plethora of milestones.

Last weekend, Lionel Messi appeared in his 750th match for Barcelona (500th in La Liga). The Barcelona captain is now just 17 appearances shy of Xavi's all-time record of 767 appearances for the club.

Messi (on reaching his 750th game for Barcelona): “It is an honour to have reached this number of matches with the Barcelona shirt.” pic.twitter.com/1P7b56QZ0j

— Barça Universal (@BarcaUniversal) January 5, 2021

The 33-year-old is currently playing his 17th season in Blaugrana colours after making his league debut at the age of just 17.

Over the years, Lionel Messi has arguably become one of the best ever players to have graced the game. The Barcelona captain has won a staggering 33 major trophies, which includes ten La Liga titles and four UEFA Champions League honours.

Lionel Messi has won individual honours galore too - his six Ballons d'Or awards are the most by any player.

In the aftermath of his milestone match against Huesca, Lionel Messi spoke to Sport and talked about the pride of achieving the milestone and the honour of representing Barcelona with distinction for nearly two decades.

“It’s a pride to have reached this number of matches in the Barcelona shirt”, said Lionel Messi.

⭐ Leo Messi💙 750 partidos haciendo historia ❤️ pic.twitter.com/jZkyPGaQOm

— Diario SPORT (@sport) January 5, 2021

In 750 matches across all competitions for Barcelona, Messi has conjured an astonishing tally of 644 goals and 284 assists.

In La Liga alone, he has played 500 matches, scoring 451 goals and assisting on 200 occasions. Messi has won seven Pichichi trophies (leading goal-scorer in a La Liga season) and six European Golden Boots (leading goalscorer across the top divisions of Europe's national leagues in a league season).

New year, same #Messi. pic.twitter.com/IScfm01bMN

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) January 2, 2021

Uncertainty still surrounds Lionel Messi's future at Barcelona

While the records and milestones continue to flow, there is still no certainty about Lionel Messi's future at the club. After trying and failing to leave Barcelona last summer, it has become increasingly apparent that he would depart as a free agent in the summer.

There have already been several rumours linking Lionel Messi with potential moves to European behemoths like Manchester City and PSG. With his Barcelona contract expiring in June, he is now free to begin talks with other clubs regarding his future.