Messi scores 650th Barcelona goal with brilliant free-kick against Athletic Bilbao

 

Lionel Messi scored his 650th goal for Barcelona with a wonderful free-kick as they beat Athletic Bilbao to move up to second in La Liga.

 

Athletic had a five-man wall, a player lying behind the wall and another on the line but Messi still managed to curl the ball into the top corner – his 49th free-kick goal for the club.

 

Athletic were level when Jordi Alba turned a cross into his own net.

 

But Antoine Griezmann slammed in the winner from Oscar Mingueza’s pass.

 

Barcelona move above Real Madrid on goal difference, but the rivals both sit 10 points behind Atletico Madrid – who have a game in hand on both sides and who defeated Cadiz earlier in the day.

 

Ronald Koeman’s side seem to be over their dreadful start to the season with eight wins and two draws in their past 10 La Liga games.

 

Barcelona’s day ended better than it started, with the club denying leaking details of Messi’s contract to El Mundo.

 

The club plan legal action after the Spanish newspaper published details of his £492m contract.

Goodbye to Muamba, the miracle boy!



Fabrice Muamba being attended to after collapsing during the FA Cup quarter-final between Tottenham Hotspur and Bolton Wanderers at White Hart Lane on March 17. Muamba has retired from playing professional football on health grounds.


It’s sad to see the Bolton Wanderers midfielder Fabrice Muamba leave football. But one can hardly feel too bad.  He is lucky to be alive.

I still find it hard to believe that a man whose heart had stopped beating for a whopping 78 minutes could still be alive and in possession of all his faculties.

That Fabrice is alive today makes one wonder how many people, who could have been alive today, have been buried and forgotten in Nigeria.

The 24-year-old collapsed during an FA Cup tie away to Tottenham Hotspur in March and his heart then stopped beating for 78 minutes. Medical experts the whole time didn’t give up on him until he came back to life.

Muamba was taken to the London Chest Hospital, not far from Tottenham's White Hart Lane ground, after receiving prolonged treatment on the pitch in a match that was abandoned by the referee.

Democratic Republic of Congo-born Muamba's recovery was hailed as miraculous but there were always questions as to whether he could play again.

"While the news is devastating, I have much to be thankful for," said Muamba. "I thank God that I am alive and I pay tribute once again to the members of the medical team who never gave up on me," he said while announcing his retirement from professional football.

I wish him all the best.