Lionel Messi might have given a fabulous performance on the night for Barcelona against Chelsea, in which he scored his 100th goal in the Champions League, but what gave him more joy was that his team progressed to the quarter-finals of the competition.

Speaking after the game, Messi who scored a brace and assisted Ousmane Dembele in a 3-0 victory over the Blues, said: “I’m happy to have reached 100 goals in such a beautiful competition, but the important thing was to move forward in a difficult match against a team with lots of really good players.

“We managed to score early and this was important. I’m happy with how it all happened.”

He added: “This was a tough match and we were strong as a team.”When we scored the third then the tie was practically ours.”

The little genius was also told that Chelsea coach Antonio Conte had heaped praise on him to which he responded saying: “I didn’t hear him, but they told me what he said and I thank him for his words.

“I am happy for how this night has ended and for reaching the quarter-finals, which is what we wanted.”