Lionel Messi: Two records that merit forward winning the Ballon d'Or

In Madrid they have already given the Ballon d'Or to Cristiano Ronaldo. He possibly deserves it for his spectacular season and for helping Madrid win la 'Decima'. But Messi, in just three days, has overshadowed all of the Portuguese star's achievements by beating two records with back-to-back hat-tricks.

On Saturday, he became the top scorer in the history of la Liga, with 253 goals, overaking Telmo Zarra. And against APOEL he took the Champions League record, jumping ahead of Raul Gonzalez. He now has 74 goals in the European competition.

Two records that, for their historical significance and their media impact, would be key in the Ballon d'Or. Messi is returning to demonstrate that he's the best player in the world and, probably, in history. 

He's a footballer with such spectacular talent that he deserves to occupy the highest podium of any individual prize. Including, of course, the Ballon d'Or.

There are those that would say (and in fact, they have already said) that voting for the prize closed a few days ago. But last year FIFA allowed voting to go on for longer to include Portugal's qualification to the World Cup. 

They could do the same this year considering Messi's records. Although, I fear in this case there will be no favourable treatment.

However, the best news for Barça is that Messi is looking happy onthe pitch. And that doesn't come with Ballon d'Or awards. Messi's smile has returned and he is leading his team.

Messi has returned to being the Messi capable of winning a game on his own. Messi has returned to being that player that conquered so many titles. 

He's forgotten (or better said, put on hold) the bad feeling with the board. We can breathe easily.