Messi scores 3 to earn Barcelona 4-2 victory at Sevilla
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Lionel Messi scored a hat trick and set up a final goal by Luis Suarez to earn Spanish league leader Barcelona a 4-2 comeback win at Sevilla on Saturday.
Messi twice canceled out goals by Jesus Navas and Gabriel Mercado before putting Barcelona ahead with five minutes remaining at Pizjuan Sanchez Stadium. The Argentine capped his stellar performance by playing Suarez clear to add another goal in stoppage time.
The treble took Messi’s league-leading tally to 25 goals in as many rounds. Messi has scored 33 times in all competitions this season.
Barcelona has a 10-point lead over Atletico Madrid, which hosts Villarreal on Sunday.
Barcelona faces two games against Real Madrid in the coming week. They meet in the second leg of their Copa del Rey semifinal on Wednesday and in the league next weekend.
