Messi tallies 50 for Barca, Real end with loss

BARCELONA: Lionel Messi scored twice to hit the 50-goal mark for the sixth time in his career on Sunday while Real Madrid put a fittingly poor ending to their worst season in recent memory after losing in the final round of the Spanish league.

Messi scored his 49th and 50th goals in all competitions this season to give Barcelona a 2-2 draw at Eibar and finished as the league’s top scorer with 36 goals for the Spanish champions.

Barcelona, which had clinched the league title with three rounds to play, will now look to also retain the Copa del Rey title next weekend when it faces Valencia. The chance of a rare treble of major titles was ended by Liverpool in the Champions League semifinals.

Madrid endured the jeers of its own frustrated fans after a 2-0 loss to Real Betis at the Santiago Bernabeu. Most of Madrid’s supporters have long placed their hopes on what changes the club will make to an underperforming squad in the summer.

Not even coach Zinedine Zidane could find a saving grace to the campaign. “It isn’t that we don’t want to (play better), we aren’t able to,” Zidane said. “The best thing is for this to be over. We are already thinking about the future and next season.”

Madrid entered the match with nothing to play for, locked into a third-place finish for the second consecutive season for the first time since 1974.

They finished 19 points behind Barcelona and eight behind Atletico Madrid.

Since the return of Zidane to take charge of the club after its shock loss to Ajax in the roundof-16 in the Champions League, Madrid has finished the campaign with a record of five wins, two draws and four losses.

“The fault is ours,” Madrid defender Marcelo said. Messi moved four goals ahead of Paris Saint-germain forward Kylian Mbappé, who has 32 in the French league with a round left - as the top scorer in Europe’s major domestic leagues.

FAVOURITE SURFACE

“This year, I don’t see a big difference. The wind is going to be the same as always. Court is still big.” His first title this season, and particularly on his favourite clay surface, is a huge boost for the Spaniard.

“Happy to reach that level in the last tournament before a Grand Slam,” said Nadal.

“But, as I said, for me I don’t want to talk about Grand Slams now. I never did in the past. Important title, now’s the moment to keep going.”

Djokovic—winner at the Madrid Open last week—gave an error-strewn display in his 54th meeting with second-ranked Nadal, having spent six hours on court in his previous two matches.

“For me, the most important thing is to feel myself playing well and feel myself healthy, with the energy that I need,” said Nadal.

“If that happens, experience is that I am going to fight for titles sooner or later.”

The 32-year-old had not dropped a set all week before the final taking a 6-0 set from four his five rivals.

“During the last couple of weeks, every day and every week have been better. And here we are finally with this great trophy, an important victory.”

Nadal pulled out of Indian Wells with a knee injury, and had not gotten past the semi-finals in Monte Carlo, Barcelona and Madrid.

“After Indian Wells, there have been some tough moments for me in terms of recovering again,” he said.

“I didn’t arrive very well prepared to Monte-carlo. There have been some low moments for me. “The first round in Barcelona,

that was a disaster.”

‘TRYING TO PEAK’

Nadal had been stunned by Stefanos Tsitsipas, a player 12 years his junior, in the semi-finals in Madrid.

But the Spaniard brushed aside the Greek in the semi-finals in the Italian capital on Friday. “Yesterday (Saturday against Tsitsipas) was probably was my best match on clay so far this season before today (Sunday), because today I played better than yesterday.”

Nadal overtakes Djokovic at the top of the list for Masters wins—the pair were level at 33 each before Sunday’s final— although the latter still holds a 28-26 career edge.

Djokovic is targetting his fourth Grand Slam in a row after Wimbledon, the US Open and the Australian Open.

The 31-year-old’s only title in Paris was in 2016.

“Nadal, No 1 favourite, without a doubt, then everyone else,” said the 15-time Grand Slam winner.

“But I think it’s going to be a good tournament. Dominic Thiem is playing some really, really good tennis.

“He can beat anybody really, especially on clay. (Fabio) Fognini also playing great quality tennis. He showed it against Nadal in Monte-carlo what he’s capable of.

“I mean, on a given day, bestof-five, with one day between matches, I think players will have enough time to really be at their best.

“Everyone is trying to peak for Roland Garros, without a doubt. “I’m looking forward to it. it’s going to be a great tournament.”