Argentine superstar Lionel Messi yesterday became the first player to score 50 goals in a Spanish season as Barcelona maintained their eight-point lead over arch-rivals Real Madrid in the La Liga title race.

Messi reached the landmark when he found the target three minutes from time in his team’s 2-0 win over Osasuna.

He had already equalled the previous best mark of 49 goals scored by Real Madrid legend Ferenc Puskas when he netted in the 1-1 draw against Real last weekend.

Earlier, Real had crushed Valencia 6-3 to set the foundation for Wednesday’s mouth-watering Champions League semi-final first-leg clash against Barcelona.

Argentina striker Gonzalo Higuain made the most of his opportunity with a hat-trick while Brazilian star Kaka grabbed a brace.

Frenchman Karim Benzema had opened the score for Real on 23 minutes.

Valencia scored their goals after the interval through Roberto Saldado, Jonas Goncalves and Jordi Alba.

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