A MESMERIC Lionel Messi helped Barcelona to come from behind and beat Sevilla 2-1 in a thrilling encounter Sunday as the side kept the pressure on La Liga leader Real Madrid, which saw off Leganes 3-0 thanks to a double from Gareth Bale.

    Messi scored his 500th goal for Barcelona.

    Reaching that landmark prompted Barcelona to tweet: “Counting official matches and friendlies, Messi reaches the figure of 500 goals for FC Barcelona. Well done Leo!”

    Bale scored both his goals shortly before halftime in a 3-0 win over Leganes, securing the Spanish league lead for Madrid ahead of the city derby against Atletico Madrid.

    Barcelona stayed two points behind Madrid by coming from behind to defeat gritty Sevilla 2-1. Luis Suarez got Barcelona’s winner.

    Madrid has 27 points after 11 rounds. Atletico, which lost 2-0 at Real Sociedad on Saturday, dropped to fourth place after Villarreal defeated Real Betis 2-0 to move up the standings.

    Messi was the difference again, scoring an equalizer with a well-placed shot from outside the area in the 43rd for his 500th goal for Barcelona. He is the club’s all-time leading scorer with 469 goals in official matches and 31 in friendlies.

    Not content with that milestone, Messi set up Suarez’s winner with a precise pass in the 61st in the back-and-forth game at Sevilla.

    Messi and Suarez lead the league in scoring with eight goals each.

    Victor “Vitolo” Machin had put Sevilla ahead in a breakaway in the 15th, speeding past a defender after a perfect through ball by midfielder Pablo Sarabia and firing a low shot past goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen.

    It was the fourth straight win for Barcelona, and Sevilla’s first home loss in the league this season.

    “It’s a win that strengthens us as a team,” Barcelona coach Luis Enrique said.

    Sevilla, which had beaten Atletico Madrid at home earlier this season, was looking for another big victory to establish itself as a top contender after the arrival of Argentine coach Jorge Sampaoli.

    With Karim Benzema out injured and Cristiano Ronaldo playing below expectations again, Bale got the job done for Real Madrid with two goals against Leganes.

    Bale dominated action from the start and was Madrid’s most dangerous forward throughout the match at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium, and his first goal came just as the crowd was growing impatient with the team.

    After a perfect long pass by Francisco “Isco” Alarcon in the 38th minute, Bale calmly found the net after his first attempt was stopped by the goalkeeper.

    His second came from close range in first-half injury time.

    (SD-Agencies)