Lionel Messi equalled Gerd Muller’s record 525 goals with a single club in Europe’s top five leagues as Barcelona won 2-0 victory over 10-man Villarreal on Sunday.

The visitors dominated possession and had the better of the chances but had to wait until the 72nd minute to break the deadlock and it came from Uruguay international Luis Suarez who fired Paco Alcacer’s assist home from close range, reports standard.co.uk.

The five-time Ballon d’Or winner struck seven minutes from time to double Barca’s lead as he collected the ball outside the box and went on a run before slotting past Villarreal goalkeeper Sergio Asenjo.

It extended their unbeaten league run to 15 games and equalled Muller’s record.

Muller scored 525 goals in 572 appearances for Bayern Munich between 1965 and 1979, a record which had stood for almost 40 years.

Messi, who previously broke Muller’s record of goals in a calendar year when he netted 86 times during 2012, has scored 525 goals in 605 games for Barcelona.

The Argentine is already La Liga’s top scorer in history with 362 strikes.