Messi tallies 50th hat trick

Just when Barcelona was at its worst, Lionel Messi gave one of his best performances of the season.

Messi scored his 50th hat trick for club and country on Saturday in a 4-2 victory at Sevilla, helping Barcelona to take a big step toward retaining the Spanish league title.

Sevilla went ahead twice, but Messi hit back each time before he netted a third goal with five minutes remaining.

After taking his league-leading tally to 25 goals, Messi added an assist for Luis Suarez to round off the win before the whistle.

It was Messi’s 44th hat trick for Barcelona, to go with another six for Argentina, according to the club.

“This doesn’t mean the league is ours yet. There is a long way to go, but it was very important to win here to protect the advantage we have over our rivals,” Messi said. “The game turned against us but we knew how to pull it out.”

Barcelona had drawn four of its previous five matches and its only goal in three games had been a penalty by Messi. A setback in Seville would have given Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid the chance to spark up the title race when they play on Sunday.

Instead, Messi almost singlehandedly ensured Barcelona opened a 10-point gap over Atletico and a 12-point advantage over Madrid.

Barcelona also rediscovered its scoring form in time for a critical week of back-to-back clashes with Madrid. /