Lionel Messi scored a hat-trick as the Catalan giants romped to victory against the hosts who finished the game with nine men after red cards for Diego Llorente and Manuel Iturra Barcelona moved eight points clear at the top of La Liga with a 5-1 victory over Rayo Vallecano that saw Luis Enrique's side make history by going 35 games unbeaten, beating Real Madrid's Spanish record.

Ivan Rakitic opened the scoring midway on 22 minutes, the Croatia international taking advantage of a goalkeeping error from Juan Carlos who fumbled a cross allowing the midfielder to take a touch before firing into an empty net.