Lionel Messi was confirmed as La Liga's top scorer for the third season running on Sunday as champions Barcelona closed out their campaign with a 2-2 draw at Eibar.

The superlative Argentinian had effectively had the award wrapped up for months given his prolific season, and he eventually finished on 36 goals after a double at Eibar, 15 clear of second-placed duo Luis Suarez and Karim Benzema:

Messi's brilliance played a huge role in Barca securing the title back in April with three matches to spare.

The 31-year-old also finished the season with the joint most assists in the Spanish top flight as he and Sevilla's Pablo Sarabia finished with 13 apiece.

Here are the final standings for the 2018-19 season:

Messi has now finished as La Liga's top scorer on six occasions and has 10 Spanish titles to his name.

In domestic terms, the 2018-19 campaign has been one of the five-time Ballon d'Or winner's best as he has eclipsed every other player in Spain.

Per WhoScored.com, Messi has taken more shots per game (5) than any other player in the division, and he has made them count with a remarkable return in front of goal.

The absence of Cristiano Ronaldo in La Liga in 2018-19 has only thrown into starker relief how supreme Messi's achievements are, as no player has got close to him.

Real Madrid can be grateful Benzema stepped up his goalscoring this term as he passed the 20-goal mark in La Liga for the first time since 2015-16.

Without his contribution, Los Blancos could have endured an even more disastrous season as they may have had to fight for a UEFA Champions League spot.

As it was they finished comfortably in third, eight points behind second-placed Atletico Madrid, with Valencia completing the top four. 

Barcelona finished as the league's top scorers by some distance after netting 90 goals.

Atleti, meanwhile, were the meanest in defence, conceding just 29 goals as Jan Oblak kept 20 clean sheets.