Lionel Messi scored his 300th La Liga goal on Wednesday night that caused the President of Venezuela to give praise the Barcelona striker during an important speech.

Nicolas Maduro was announcing he was forced to raise the price of petrol in Venezuela, when he shocked the attendance by shouting "Viva Messi y viva Catalunya" during the speech.

He then asked the audience if any of them supported Barcelona or Real Madrid before returning to the speech announcing the devaluation of the countries currency, the Venezuelan bolivar.

Messi went on to score a second goal in the game, his 301st in La Liga as Barcelona defeated Sporting Gijon 3-1.