Lionel Messi of FC Barcelona celebrates after scoring his team's third goal during the Copa del Rey Round of 16 match between FC Barcelona and CD Leganes at Camp Nou on January 30, 2020 in Barcelona, Spain.
Lionel Messi set yet another landmark on Thursday night as he became the first player in the history of Spanish football to reach 500 wins as Barcelona thrashed Leganes 5-0 to advance to the quarter-finals of the Copa del Rey.
Messi's double, as well as goals from Antoine Griezmann, Clement Lenglet and Arthur Melo rounded off an emphatic win at Camp Nou, where Barca successfully bounced back from Saturday's surprise La Liga loss away at Valencia.
As Messi enters the 500 club, the Argentine maestro now sits at the head of the ranking of wins, ahead of second placed Xavi Hernandez (476) and Andres Iniesta (459), according to statistics on Barcelona official website. It has taken 710 games in total for Messi to reach that mark.
"We did a lot of things well but I am not completely happy because we also lost control of the game in the latter stages of the first half," said Quique Setien, who replaced Ernesto Valverde as Barca coach earlier this month.
His appointment will be judged on performances in the league and Champions League this season but Barca have a rich recent history in the Copa del Rey, which they have won in four of the last five years.
They will be in Friday's draw for the last eight but Sevilla will not after they fell to a shock 3-1 defeat away at Segunda side Mirandes. Real Madrid, Valencia, Real Sociedad, Granada, Villarreal, and Athletic Bilbao complete the list.
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