Messi at the double in Barca rout

Lionel Messi scored twice as Barcelona claimed their second consecutive 5-0 win and three points in UEFA Champions League Group H after outclassing hosts BATE Borisov in Minsk.

Fresh from hitting a hat-trick in his side’s Primera Liga win by the same score over Atletico Madrid on Saturday, Messi blasted home in the 38th and 56th minutes to put the game out of sight.

Aliaksandr Volodko’s own goal after 19 minutes had set the defending champions on their way and Pedro added a second two minutes later. David Villa completed the scoring in the last minute.

Also in Group H, AC Milan had to work hard to dispatch Viktoria Plzen at the San Siro, waiting until the 53rd minute until Zlatan Ibrahimovic finally broke the deadlock from the penalty spot.

Massimiliano Allegri’s men, who have struggled to make an impact in Serie A so far with five points from four games, put the points beyond doubt when Antonio Cassano netted the second in the 66th minute.