Lionel Messi scored against Granada when he broke Barcelona’s official goals record in 2012. On March 20, he scored a hat-trick in Barcelona’s 5–3 La Liga victory at Camp Nou, taking his official Barcelona total to 234 goals and moving past César Rodríguez.
César’s record had stood for 57 years. He scored 232 official goals for Barcelona between 1939 and 1955, making him one of the club’s defining early stars. Messi surpassed him during a remarkable 2011–12 season in which he scored 73 goals in all competitions for Barcelona.
The Granada match was a particularly fitting setting because César had also played for Granada during his career. Messi’s three goals included a headed finish and two left-footed strikes, completing the hat-trick in the second half.
This record was different from Messi’s later La Liga scoring record. In December 2012, he also passed César’s Barcelona league total, but the Granada match concerned the broader official-goals mark across competitions.