Messi double stretches Barca lead

Lionel Messi scored twice to take his season's goal total to 43 as Barcelona beat Eibar comfortably to open up a four-point lead at the top of La Liga.

Messi converted a 31st-minute penalty for Luis Enrique's side, who face Manchester City in the Champions League on Wednesday.

The Argentina forward headed in Ivan Rakitic's corner after half-time.

Federico Piovaccari hit the bar late on for Eibar, who are slipping towards danger after eight straight defeats.

Gaizka Garitano's side, three points above the bottom three, face a crucial trip to relegation rivals Granada next weekend.

Granada missed the chance to climb out of the relegation zone on Saturday as they were beaten 3-1 at Rayo Vallecano.

For Barcelona, this was just about as straightforward a victory as they could have hoped for ahead of two key home matches.

Enrique's side hold a 2-1 lead going into their last-16 second leg meeting with City, after which they will host second-placed Real Madrid in La Liga next weekend.

Credit: BBC