Lionel Messi equals Pelé’s 643 club goals, Barça held by Valencia
Barcelona, Dec 20: Lionel Messi has another individual scoring milestone, but he sure doesn't have a team that looks like a champion.
Messi equalled Pel 's all-time club scoring tally on Saturday in a 2-2 draw with Valencia. His 643rd career goal for Barcelona since his 2004 debut matched Pel 's tally for Santos from 1957-74.
Messi is Barcelona's and the Spanish league's all-time leading scorer.
In January 2018, he became the most prolific scorer among Europe's top leagues when he reached 366 league goals, surpassing Gerd Mueller's Bundesliga mark of 365. Messi had already surpassed Gerd Mueller's single-year goal mark by scoring 86 times in 2012.
Pel congratulated the Argentina forward on social media: "Like you, I know what it's like to love wearing the same shirt every day. Like you, I know that there is nothing better than the place we feel at home.
"Congratulations on your historic record, Lionel," Pel added.
"But above all, congratulations on your beautiful career at Barcelona. Stories like ours, of loving the same club for so long, unfortunately will be increasingly rare in football."
Pel 's comments went right to the heart of Messi's uncertain situation at Barcelona.
Messi has yet to recant on his announcement last summer that he wanted to leave the club which is no longer the dominant force that he had done so much to forge over the past two decades.
His contract expires in June, and he will be free to negotiate with other clubs come January.
The latest setback by Barcelona left Ronald Koeman's team in fifth place and eight points adrift of league leader Atl tico Madrid, which got two goals by Luis Su rez to beat Elche 3-1.
Messi cancelled out Mouctar Diakhaby's opener for Valencia when he scored in first half injury time moments after Jaume Dom nech saved his penalty shot.
Jordi Alba recovered the rebound of Dom nech's save and crossed it to the far post where Messi headed it in.
Central defender Ronald Ara jo scored his first career goal for Barcelona with an acrobatic kick for 2-1 at Camp Nou in the 53rd.
But Jos Gay set up Maxi G mez to hit back for Valencia in the 69th and split the points.
GROWING PAINS
Koeman attributed the slip to the youth of his team, which he is trying to build around a veteran core. Koeman gave consecutive starts to Ara jo and scar Mingueza, both 21, and entrusted playmaking duties to 18-year-old Pedro Pedri Gonz lez. Sergi o Dest, at 20, has become his undisputed starter at right back with Sergio Roberto injured.
"The age of some players can explain why there is a certain inconsistency because consistency comes from playing together for a long time," Koeman said.
"We lacked control and lost too many balls in defense sometimes. I saw my team have doubts."
A botched marking scheme made it easier for Diakhaby to head in Valencia's opener in the 29th when Antoine Griezmann -- who is significantly shorter than the center back -- lost his mark of him during a corner kick.
"We don't have many tall players to defend their tallest ones but we cannot leave anyone wide open," Koeman said.
"We have to at least be there, be engaged."
SU REZ SCORES
Su rez's goals were his first since he recovered from the coronavirus. He isn't the voracious scorer he used to be at Barcelona before changing clubs this summer, but he is still a world-class finisher when his teammates get him the ball in scoring position.
Substitute Diego Costa, who replaced Jo o F lix after he took a hard knock, put the result beyond doubt for Atletico when he earned and converted a penalty with 10 minutes remaining in his first appearance after missing seven games due to injury.
The league leaders moved three points clear of Real Madrid and Real Sociedad, which lost at Levante 2-1.
SOCIEDAD UPSET
Levante overcame an opening goal by Sociedad to get a win that pulled it out of the relegation zone. Levante outplayed Sociedad in the second half and Jorge de Frutos blasted in the winner with three minutes remaining.
OTHER RESULTS
Spain striker Gerard Moreno scored his league-leading seventh and eighth goals to lead fourth-place Villarreal's 3-1 victory at 10-man Osasuna, leaving it one point behind Madrid.
Sevilla missed the chance to move ahead of Barcelona after conceding a late goal in a 1-1 draw with Valladolid.
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Delhi Polls: BJP faces protest, placates MLA amid resentment over ticket distribution
New Delhi, Jan 12: Resentment surfaced in the BJP on Sunday over ticket distribution for Delhi Assembly polls, with a protest held outside its Delhi unit office and an angry outburst by the outgoing MLA from Karawal Nagar who was not included in the candidate list released a day earlier.
As MLA Mohan Singh Bisht threatened to revolt after being denied a ticket from Karawal Nagar, the party rushed to control the damage and announced his candidature from the Mustafabad seat this evening.
A group of protesters from Tughlakabad in South Delhi held a dharna at the gate of the Delhi BJP office, demanding a change in the candidate from the constituency.
"Vikram Bidhuri Tum Sangharsh Karo; Modi Se Bair Nahi, Rohtas Teri Khair Nahi," the protesters, including mostly youngsters, chanted as the party leaders tried to pacify them.
In the second list of BJP candidates for the polls declared on Saturday, Rohtas Bidhuri was fielded from the Tughlakabad seat. In 2020 Assembly polls, Vikram Bidhuri who is a relative of senior party leader Ramesh Bidhuri, lost to AAP's Sahiram by over 13,000 votes.
A similar protest was also held by some party workers outside the Delhi BJP office against Mehrauli candidate Gajainder Yadav after the announcement of the first list of candidates earlier this month.
Bisht, the senior-most BJP MLA in the outgoing Assembly elected five times from Karawal Nagar, openly expressed unhappiness over being denied the ticket to contest from his stronghold.
A senior party leader said he was pacified after a meeting with BJP chief JP Nadda.
Bisht, after getting the ticket from Mustafabad, expressed confidence that he would win the seat for the BJP.
"I met the national president and things were ironed out. I have assured that I will contest from Mustafabad and win the seat for the party," Bisht told PTI.
The MLA said he and the BJP had considerable support in Mustafabad and he has already attended two public meetings there.
The BJP won the Mustafabad seat, having a significant minority community presence, in the 2015 Assembly polls but lost it to Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in 2020.
Earlier in the day, Bisht told PTI that the party's decision to replace him with Kapil Mishra was "wrong" and its consequences will be visible after voting on February 5.
"You have challenged the 'samaj' (his Uttarakhandi community), not Mohan Singh Bisht. The BJP will lose at least 8-10 seats because of this decision, including Karawal Nagar, Burari, Mustafabad and Gokalpuri," Bisht warned.
The BJP fielded Kapil Mishra, a Hindutva hardliner, from Karwal Nagar in North East Delhi, which was rocked by massive communal violence just after the 2020 Assembly polls.
Sources in the party claimed that there was also "deep resentment" among the Delhi BJP's Scheduled Castes Morcha leaders over being denied tickets from different constituencies including Madipur and Kondli.
A top Delhi BJP functionary stressed that there are many ticket aspirants, so it is natural for those who did not get selected to feel disappointed.
"The BJP is a disciplined party and its leaders understand this. Sooner or later, everyone will realise this and work for the victory of the party giving up their resentment," he said.
The elections to 70 Assembly seats in Delhi are scheduled on February 5. Results will be out after the counting of votes on February 8.
The BJP, out of power in Delhi since 1998, is making all-out efforts to return to power. In the 2015 and 2020 Assembly polls, the party was completely routed by the AAP, scraping through with just three and eight seats, respectively.
