Leo Messi has scored as many goals as Real Madrid in La Liga

Leo Messi has scored as many La Liga goals this season as the whole of the Real Madrid squad. And his nine goals are more than every other team in La Liga, too, apart from Real Sociedad (11), Atletico Madrid (10) and Valencia (9). However, Sevilla (7) and Real Betis, Villarreal and Deportivo (all 6) all train the Argentine. 

Messi's made his best ever start to a league season, even bettering 2011/12, when he ended the fifth round of fixtures with five goals and the season with 50, a league record. 

In total Barça have scored 17 goals, with nine of them coming from Messi (53 percent), while Madrid have scored just nine themselves, affected by Cristiano Ronaldo's suspension and Karim Benzema's injury. 

Messi's goals have come in just three games: two against Alaves, three against Espanyol and four against Eibar. 

Marco Asensio (2), Bale (2), Casemiro (1), Lucas Vázquez (1), Borja Mayoral (1) and Toni Kroos (1) have shared out Madrid's goal, with the ninth an own goal by La Real's Kevin Rodrigues. 

However, even the return of Ronaldo on Wednesday didn't help, as Madrid were beaten 1-0 by Real Betis at the Bernabeu. 

The night before, after Messi's four goals against Eibar, Barça had taken their points total to 15 (seven more than Madrid) with their fifth straight win of the season.