Lionel Messi wasn't at his best, and neither were Barcelona, but they were able to grind down a tired Leganes and record a comfortable La Liga victory at Camp Nou.
In a frustrating first half Messi struggled to find any space whatsoever as Leganes pressured the space effectively, and it was only Ansu Fati's excellent effort which stopped the Catalan side going in at half-time level.
But Messi started to find a little more of the ball in the second period, and his key moment came midway through the half. Whilst Leganes defenders hacked and pulled at him he somehow slalomed all the way into the area.
A stray elbow caught the Argentine - though it looked extremely harsh - and the referee awarded a penalty kick which Messi duly slotted home, to make it two goals and two assists in two matches, post-lockdown.
Below you can see the full match statistics for all players, and the table underneath signifies Messi's key data points from the contest.
⚽ Barcelona 2-0 Leganes: Player Ratings and Statistics
Lionel Messi match stats
Statistic | Value | Notes |
FC Rating | 8.1 | |
Mins Played | 90 | |
Touches | 116 | Rank #3 |
Passes | 78 | |
Pass Completion | 79% | |
Completed Dribbles | 4 | Joint Rank #1 |
Big Chance Created | 1 | |
Shots | 3 | |
Goals | 1 | Penalty Goal |