Lionel Messi added another feather to his burgeoning list of records, going past Cristiano Ronaldo to become the leading goal-scorer in the top five European leagues on Wednesday night.
Europe's top-flight competitions are - the English Premier League, Ligue 1 of France, Spain's La Liga, the Bundesliga of Germany, and the Italian Serie A.
The Argentina superstar's feat came in his club Paris Saint-Germain's (PSG) 3-1 victory over Montpellier, which also took them five points clear on the French league's charts. Playing his part in PSG's win, Messi scored the second goal for his side in the contest which was also his 697th strike in the top-5 leagues of Europe, thus surpassing CR7 in the exclusive list.
Most of La Pulga's goals have come while playing for Barcelona with the 34-year-old producing 672 in 778 appearances for the former Spanish champions.
Previously, Ronaldo held the record with 696 goals which he had netted during his career for Manchester United, Real Madrid, and Juventus. Remarkably, Messi took 84 games less than the Funchal-born player to reach the landmark.
Ronaldo and Messi's careers have taken contrasting turns in the last few months. While the former lost his captaincy and place in the Portuguese team after his side's disappointing run in the FIFA World Cup in December 2022, the former Barca skipper went on to end Argentina's 28-year wait for the elusive trophy in Qatar.
Speaking about more recent days, Ronaldo was mocked by Saudi fans after he failed to inspire his new club Al-Nassr against Al-Ittihad in the Saudi Super Cup semifinals, losing 3-1 in the crucial clash.
On the other hand, Messi has continued his good form for PSG, helping the Parisians to occupy the top position in the French top-flight and a spot in the Round of 16 of the Champions League.