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Lionel Messi is auctioning off a pair of his recording breaking football boots in order to raise money for a children's hospital in Barcelona.

The FC Barcelona forward wore the boots in a match where he became the top scoring footballer of all time.

Specifically, he broke the 46 year old record held by Brazilian footballer Pele for the most goals scored in competitive matches by a single player for a single club.

The boots are expected to fetch £70,000 for the hospital.

Messi broke the record in a Spanish top flight match against Real Valladolid on 22 December 2020, taking his Barcelona tally to 644 goals.

Pele - who is regarded as one of the best players of all time - managed 643 competitive goals during his career for Santos.

The Adidas boots, which have been personally signed by Messi, were originally given to a museum in Barcelona but will now be auctioned instead.

Messi said: "Achieving the record of 644 goals for the same club made me very happy, but the most important thing is being able to give something back to all the kids fighting for their health."

Lots of people argue that Messi is the greatest footballer of all-time.

The 33-year-old has scored 663 goals in 770 matches for Barcelona in a career spanning two decades.

He's won the best player in the world award - officially known as the Ballon d'Or - six times and he's won The Champions League with Barcelona four times.