Real Zaragoaza coach Jose Aurelio Gay believes that Lionel Messi is in the same light as Diego Maradona, but faster.

Messi gathered his second La Liga hat-trick against Real Zaragoza, which puts him five goals ahead of Gonzalo Higuain for the Pichichi trophy.

The pacey forward also won his side a penalty that Zlatan Ibrahimovic converted to complete the rout.

Speaking at a press conference Aurelio Gay said: "We have failed against a fantastic player. We fought far as we could. The team has not given up at any time and have been in the game until Messi decided it.

"The game was exciting, vibrant, beautiful and we love the football we've seen from a huge player. Today I returned to seeing Maradona in his heyday but with more revolutions, much faster."