Lionel Messi warmed up for his anticipated fifth World Player of the Year crown by scoring his first hat-trick of the season to move Barcelona back to the top of La Liga by cruising past Granada 4-0 on Saturday.
Messi effectively ended the contest within the first 15 minutes with two easy finishes before completing his hat-trick after the break to take his tally to 12 goals in 10 games since returning from knee ligament damage in November, while Neymar completed the rout late on.
The European champions lead Atletico Madrid, who travel to Celta Vigo on Sunday, by a point and are now five clear of Real Madrid.
Real begin a new era under Zinedine Zidane later on Saturday when they host Deportivo la Coruna at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Messi is expected to beat off teammate Neymar and current holder Cristiano Ronaldo to the Ballon d’Or on Monday after leading Barca to a second treble of La Liga, Champions League and Copa del Rey in six years last season.
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