The Brazilian was in second place behind Gerd Mueller, who netted 85 times for Bayern Munich and West Germany during just 60 games in 1972.

However, the 25-year-old Argentine is now only chasing down the legendary forward thanks to a double against Mallorca on Sunday.

His first came on the stroke of half-time in fortuitous style, squeezing a shot under Dudu Aouate to make it 2-0 to Barca.

After the break, Barca faced a fight back from Mallorca, but Messi was there to make it 4-2 in fantastic fashion, combining well with Alexis Sanchez before scoring a stunning goal.

Messi has managed his 76 goals in just 59 appearances and has nine league games – plus his internationals – to break Mueller's record.