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Lionel Messi at his breathtaking best ripped Bayer Leverkusen apart with a record five-goal Champions League haul as Barcelona swept into the quarter-finals 7-1 on the night and 10-2 on aggregate.
The Argentinian world player of the year became the first player to score five in a Champions League match, and the first in the competition since Soren Lerby did so for Ajax in a 1979 European Cup tie against Omonia Nicosia, in one of the most comprehensive drubbings in the competition's history.
The Barcelona coach, Pep Guardiola, said: "He's the best [ever] – there is no other like him. The numbers speak for themselves. One day he'll score six."
After Leverkusen lost last month's last-16 first leg 3-1, the Bundesliga side's mission impossible was effectively ended when Messi sped on to Xavi's lofted pass and scooped the ball over Bernd Leno in the 25th minute. He added a second with a trademark run across the defence and low shot three minutes before half-time and completed his hat-trick with another stunning chip, this time with his right foot, four minutes after the interval.
The substitute Cristian Tello scored either side of Messi's fourth, which came after Leno spilled the ball at his feet, and the Argentinian bagged his fifth with a powerful shot six minutes from time. The Leverkusen substitute Karim Bellarabi scored an added-time consolation.
Messi has been enjoying a purple patch in recent weeks, even by his standards, and his five goals took his tally to 14 in his last five matches for club and country.
He now has 12 in the Champions League in seven appearances this season and has netted an astonishing 30 goals in his last 25 games in Europe's elite club competition.
The Leverkusen coach, Robin Dutt, cut a lonely figure on the touchline in the second half as his side were humbled by the Spanish, European and world champions.
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