Lionel Messi set to equal another Barcelona record

Messi will enter the FC Barcelona history books once again if he plays in Monday night’s La Liga match against SD Huesca.

Lionel Messi will move level with Xavi Hernandez as the player with the most appearances in Barcelona’s history if he plays in Monday’s game against Huesca.

The Argentine is only one match away from equaling Xavi’s all-time record of 767 appearances across all competitions. He equaled his former teammate’s record league appearances for the club last month.

To date, Messi has played in La Liga (509 times), the Champions League (149), UEFA Super Cup (4), FIFA Club World Cup (5), Copa del Rey (79), and the Spanish Super Cup (20) during his Camp Nou career.

💡 Players with the most appearances for FC Barcelona:

1. Xavi Hernández: 767
2. Lionel Messi: 766
3. Andres Iniesta: 674
4. Sergio Busquets: 616
5. Carles Puyol: 593
6. Gerard Piqué: 558
7. Migueli: 549
8. Víctor Valdés: 535
9. Carles Rexach: 450
10. Guillermo Amor: 421 pic.twitter.com/qWVNzBNNOX

— Barça Buzz (@Barca_Buzz) March 15, 2021

“Well it is an incredible number of games,” said Barcelona manager Ronald Koeman as per beIN SPORTS.

“That also shows what Xavi did for the club, and now Messi will equal the number games of Xavi.

“It will be a great day and then the next that will be one more than Xavi achieved with Barcelona. It is incredible because that shows how important he is and was for Barcelona.

“The number of games, the number of goals, the number of hat-tricks, the number of titles.

“Let’s hope that we will continue with Leo, winning titles, what he showed and what he did for this club.”

A 16-match unbeaten has seen Barcelona climb from ninth-place in early December to third in LaLiga. Victory over Huesca, a team they’ve never lost to, would see them reclaim second from Real Madrid and move within four points of league leaders Atletico Madrid.

Incidentally, Messi has managed two goals and three assists against bottom-placed side Huesca in only two appearances.