Lionel Messi came to the rescue of Barcelona as they struggled against Ukrainian side Shakhtar Donetsk in a 2-1 win, which saw the Catalan giants stay top of Group C. Ilsinho’s goal looked to have secured a shock three points for the hosts, until two goals in the last four minutes from Lionel Messi provided a stunning comeback from Barcelona.

Barcelona scored an incredible 5 times in 28 minutes as they cruised to a 6-1 victory over fellow title contenders Atletico Madrid. Rafael Marquez, Samuel Eto’o and Lionel Messi all scored within the first 8 minutes in an explosive start at the Nou Camp. Maxi Rodriguez then gave Atletico some hope of a come-back when he scored after 13 minutes, but the goal proved to be nothing more than consolation when Eto’o netted his second of the night and Eidur Gudjohnsen added Barca’s fifth after 28 minutes. The remainder of the first half and beginning of the second half proved to be less chaotic, but Thierry Henry still had time to round off the game for the Blaugrana when he scored their sixth and final goal of the night on 78 minutes. If that’s not enough, all live football like Barca’s 6-1 win can be seen here at the Live Football Network.

FC Barcelona have launched a joint bid alongside Bolivian businessman Marcelo Clure to create a new Major League Soccer franchise in the city of Miami. The MLS is set to add two new teams to its league in 2011 and Barca president Joan Laporta is keen to break into the American market. Six other cities have lodged their bids so far, with Liverpool co-owner George Gillett being part of the ownership group from the Montreal bid. Should Barcelona be successful in their venture, they will become the first European club to own an MLS franchise.