The magic of Leo Messi from direct free-kicks

Lionel Messi continued his spectacular knack of scoring from direct free-kicks with a sensational piece of skill against Alavés in Barça’s first League game of the 2018/19 season. In the 64th minute, the Argentinian rolled the ball underneath the defensive wall and into the net for the opener.

It was a repeat of the goal he scored last season against Girona, and as you can see in the video, they’re almost identical.

Following on from last season

The No.10 remains lethal from the dead ball, and his goal against the Basque club follows the seven direct free-kicks he scored in 2017/18; against Olympiacos in the Champions League and Real Sociedad, Alavés, Girona, Las Palmas, Atlético Madrid and Leganés in the League. Those goals surpassed the previous record of six in a single season, set by Ronaldinho.

Messi can now lay claim to having scored from a direct free-kick ten years in a row. His first ever was on 4 October 2008 at home to Atlético Madrid (6-1).