Lionel Messi showed flashes of his brilliance during Barcelona’s 5-1 thumping of Ferencvaros in the Champions League curtain-raiser.
Lionel Messi reminded world football just how good he could be when he enjoys his game as Barcelona eased past Ferencvaros at Camp Nou.
The match was level until the 27th minute when the 33-year-old wizard decided to take matters into his own hands.
In a true Messi fashion, the six-time Ballon d’Or winner picked up the ball in the center of the pitch and made a terrific run down the right-hand side.
The Argentinean superstar danced past three Ferencvaros defenders before being brought to the ground in the visitors’ penalty box [via GiveMeSport].
Converting the spot-kick was only a matter of formality for one of the best players to grace the beautiful game.
Indeed, the way Messi smuggled the ball past the opposition defenders bears much resemblance to his out-of-this-world slalom versus Athletic Bilbao five years ago.
He then moved one to set up Ousmane Dembele for a tap-in in the 89th minute to seal Barcelona’s commanding victory.
Ansu Fati, Philippe Coutinho, and Pedri were also on the scoresheet as Barca got off to a flying Champions League start.
Ronald Koeman will now be desperate to see Messi and Co translate that form into the upcoming clash of titans in Catalonia.
Real Madrid arrive at Camp Nou on Saturday for a massive La Liga showdown, with both sides looking to bounce back from last weekend’s failures.
While Barcelona suffered a narrow 1-0 away loss to Getafe, Los Blancos succumbed to a shock home defeat to newly-promoted Cadiz.
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